honor
Americannoun
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honors
plural
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honesty, fairness, or integrity in one's beliefs and actions.
a man of honor.
- Synonyms:
- uprightness, probity
- Antonyms:
- dishonesty, dishonor
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a source of credit or distinction.
to be an honor to one's family.
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high respect, as for worth, merit, or rank.
to be held in honor.
- Synonyms:
- veneration, reverence, homage, deference
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such respect manifested.
a memorial in honor of the dead.
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high public esteem; fame; glory.
He has earned his position of honor.
- Synonyms:
- distinction
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the privilege of being associated with or receiving a favor from a respected person, group, organization, etc..
I had the honor of serving on the Pulitzer Prize jury.
It is an honor to introduce this evening's speaker.
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Usually honors. evidence, as a special ceremony, decoration, scroll, or title, of high rank, dignity, or distinction.
political honors;
military honors.
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Honor, a deferential title of respect, especially for judges and mayors (preceded by His, Her, Your, etc.).
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honors,
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special rank or distinction conferred by a university, college, or school upon a student for eminence in scholarship or success in some particular subject.
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an advanced course of study for superior students.
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especially historically, chastity or purity in a woman.
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Also called honor card. Cards.
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Bridge. any of the five highest trump cards, as an ace, king, queen, jack, or ten in the trump suit, or any of the four aces in a no-trump contract.
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Whist. any of the four highest trump cards, as an ace, king, queen, or jack in the trump suit.
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Golf. the privilege of teeing off before the other player or side, given after the first hole to the player or side that won the previous hole.
verb (used with object)
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honors,
present (3rd person singular)
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honored,
past participle, past
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honoring
present participle
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to hold in honor or high respect; revere.
to honor one's parents.
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to treat with honor.
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to confer honor or distinction upon.
The university honored her with its leadership award.
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to worship, glorify, or serve (a deity).
Believers honor Hanuman as the embodiment of strength and courage.
May he grow to be a man who loves and honors God.
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to show a courteous regard for.
to honor an invitation.
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Commerce. to accept or pay (a draft, check, etc.).
All credit cards are honored here.
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to accept as valid and conform to the request or demands of (an official document).
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(in square dancing) to meet or salute with a bow.
adjective
idioms
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do honor to,
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to show respect to.
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to be a credit to.
Such good students would do honor to any teacher.
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do the honors, to serve or preside as host, as in introducing people, or carving or serving at table.
Father did the honors at the family Thanksgiving dinner.
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be on / upon one's honor, to accept and acknowledge personal responsibility for one's actions.
West Point cadets are on their honor not to cheat on an exam.
noun
Synonym Usage
Honor, honesty, integrity, sincerity refer to the highest moral principles and the absence of deceit or fraud. Honor denotes a fine sense of, and a strict conformity to, what is considered morally right or due: a high sense of honor; on one's honor. Honesty denotes the presence of probity and particularly the absence of deceit or fraud, especially in business dealings: uncompromising honesty and trustworthiness. Integrity indicates a soundness of moral principle that no power or influence can impair: a man of unquestioned integrity and dependability. Sincerity implies absence of dissimulation or deceit, and a strong adherence to truth: His sincerity was evident in every word. Honor, consideration, distinction refer to the regard in which one is held by others. Honor suggests a combination of liking and respect: His colleagues held him in great honor. Consideration suggests honor because of proved worth: a man worthy of the highest consideration. Distinction suggests particular honor because of qualities or accomplishments: She achieved distinction as a violinist at an early age.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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honorernoun
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overhonorverb (used with object)
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rehonorverb (used with object)
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honorlessadjective
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self-honoredadjective
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unhonoredadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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honorsimple
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honorssimple
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have honoredperfect
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has honoredperfect
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am honoringprogressive
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are honoringprogressive
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is honoringprogressive
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have been honoringperfect progressive
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has been honoringperfect progressive
Past
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honoredsimple
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had honoredperfect
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was honoringprogressive
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were honoringprogressive
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had been honoringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of honor
First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English noun (h)onour, (h)onor, from Old French (h)onor, onur, from Latin honōr- (stem of honor, earlier honōs); verb ultimately derivative of the noun
Explanation
Honor has many uses, all of them good. If you are called a man of honor, you are respected. If someone honors you, they recognize and award you for your achievements. The term honor has always been a word used to describe men and women of high moral worth or great achievement. It can be used as either a noun or verb, and in many different settings. People graduate from college with honor, meaning they have outstanding grades. A woman of honor is pure and decent. Soldiers are buried with full military honors, which means they are given gun salutes and trumpet calls and the nation's fullest respect.
Vocabulary lists containing honor
Veterans Day Vocabulary
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A Graduation Lexicon
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"Rikki-Tikki-Tavi" by Rudyard Kipling
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
“It was an ‘afterparty’ given in their honor.
From Salon ● Sep. 19, 2026
With an 82-80 record, the 2005 San Diego Padres currently hold the dubious honor of being the worst squad ever to qualify for the playoffs in an uninterrupted season.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
The crater was officially named McGetchin in honor of pioneering lunar scientist Tom McGetchin.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 18, 2026
Chris Brown is speaking out after lawmakers honored him during his concert in Arlington, Texas, then apologized for the honor.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2026
And it’s a real honor to be escorting a Queen Mother and her twin brother.”
From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer
On Monday, a 20-year-old Haitian immigrant named Pierre Damas Bel, who graduated from high school with honors in May, walked into traffic on I-70 in Springfield highway and was killed.
From Salon ● Sep. 3, 2026
The medal is one of the highest honors associated with human spaceflight in the United States.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 24, 2026
His play earned him Sun Belt Conference defensive player of the year honors.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 23, 2026
Mourinho, who has won 26 major honors, has not won a domestic league title in over a decade and has not won silverware of any kind since 2022.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026
I think she’s one of the honors English teachers at the high school.
From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison
Some executives considering investing in Venezuela have sought her out, said members of her team, seeking assurances that deals struck with the current government would be honored in any transition.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 19, 2026
Earlier this month, a pair of ceremonies, formerly called the Creative Arts Emmys, honored artistic and technical achievements as well as some performance categories.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026
In 2010, a reclusive Russian mathematician Grigori Perelman was honored for proving the Poincaré conjecture, the first Millennium Prize Problem to be solved.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026
Biddy Mason was previously honored in 1989, when a mini-park off Spring and 3rd streets was built to memorialize her on her original homestead.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2026
Even as a boy of seven or eight, I knew why everyone honored Aleer-Manguak in death.
From "Lost Boy, Lost Girl" by John Bul Dau
At ceremonies on Sept. 5 and 6, honoring artistic and technical achievements, as well as some performance categories, several shows asserted some early dominance.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026
So I’m trying to balance several things: honoring my mother’s wishes, treating my brother fairly, protecting his children’s educational opportunities, and not creating an expectation that I will ultimately be responsible for supporting my brother.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 10, 2026
Earlier this week, the Metropolitan Museum of Art declared it would no longer proceed with its Costume Institute’s upcoming exhibition honoring John Galliano, scheduled to debut next year.
From Salon ● Sep. 5, 2026
The Metropolitan Museum of Art canceled a planned May 2027 exhibit and gala honoring fashion designer John Galliano.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026
This is her service to us, her honoring.
From "Native Speaker" by Chang-rae Lee
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
