honest

American  

[on-ist] / ˈɒn ɪst /

adjective

1. truthful; ethical; fair; not lying or cheating.

   She's an honest person.

   Synonyms:

   just, honorable, fair, scrupulous, principled, moral, incorruptible, good, ethical, conscientious, veracious, truthful, trustworthy

   Antonyms:

   unconscionable, immoral, dishonest, corrupt, untruthful, mendacious, lying, dishonorable, unscrupulous, unprincipled, unethical

2. showing uprightness and fairness; not deceitful.

   Honest dealings remain central to the corporation's core values.

   Synonyms:

   upright

3. gained or obtained fairly.

   honest wealth.

4. sincere; frank; candid.

   He has an honest face.

   Give me your honest opinion.

   Synonyms:

   unaffected, sincere, simple, natural, ingenuous, guileless, genuine, artless, up-front, unreserved, unguarded, straightforward, straight, plain-spoken, plain, outspoken, out-front, open-hearted, open, free-hearted, free-spoken, frank, foursquare, forthright, forthcoming, direct, candid, aboveboard

   Antonyms:

   phony, insincere, guileful, disingenuous, artificial, artful, affected

5. genuine or unadulterated.

   honest commodities.

   Synonyms:

   unadulterated, pure, true, sure-enough, real, genuine, echt, bona fide, authentic, actual

   Antonyms:

   sham, pseudo, phony, mock, fake, bogus

6. respectable; having a good reputation.

   an honest name.

   Synonyms:

   reputable, estimable

   Antonyms:

   disreputable

7. reliable in accuracy or truth; true; just.

   honest weights.

   Synonyms:

   reliable, precise, faithful, exact, accurate, trusty

   Antonyms:

   unreliable

8. humble, plain, or unadorned.

9. Archaic. chaste; virtuous.

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honest British  

/ ˈɒnɪst /

adjective

1. not given to lying, cheating, stealing, etc; trustworthy

2. not false or misleading; genuine

3. just or fair

   honest wages

4. characterized by sincerity and candour

   an honest appraisal

5. without pretensions or artificial traits

   honest farmers

6. archaic (of a woman) respectable

7. a mediator in disputes, esp international ones

8. slang:school (interjection) genuinely, really

9. 1. (adjective) completely authentic

   2. (interjection) an expression of affirmation or surprise

10. to marry (a woman, esp one who is pregnant) to prevent scandal

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honest Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing honest

• come by (honestly)
• open (honest) and aboveboard

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Other Word Forms

• honestness noun
• overhonest adjective
• overhonestly adverb
• overhonestness noun
• quasi-honest adjective
• quasi-honestly adverb

Etymology

Origin of honest

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English honeste, from Middle French, from Latin honestus “honorable,” equivalent to hones- (variant stem of honōs ) honor + -tus adjective suffix

Example Sentences

"I try and forget about it to be honest," he said.

From BBC

He credits the writer and director, Stefan Golaszewski, for creating a show that at it's core has "such humility and honest".

From BBC

"But it's a bit sad to be honest that we're even talking about this. It is what it is. You don't need to feel sorry for me. I'll be fine."

From BBC

Meanwhile, another local resident said: "It's just quite sad to see it up in flames to be honest."

From BBC

Let’s be honest, somebody over there is going to do that anyway.

From Salon

Related Words

• authentic
• conscientious
• decent
• equitable
• fair
• forthright
• genuine
• honorable
• impartial
• proper
• reliable
• sincere
• straightforward
• true
• trustworthy
• virtuous