honest

[on-ist]

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.

honest

/ 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

Other Word Forms

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of honest¹

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of honest¹

C13: from Old French honeste, from Latin honestus distinguished, from honōs _honour

Idioms and Phrases

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

Example Sentences

Lady Beckham is strikingly honest about the struggles her fashion business faced.

Read more on BBC

“I think this is only going to infuriate people, to be honest,” Brown said.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

"It definitely does, if I am being brutally honest," he said, upgrading an initial assessment of "probably".

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With every stanza, she settled into a musical rhythm that was satiric and bitingly honest.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

"Two years on from the horrific massacre on October 7, we must also be honest: the same hatred that fuelled those barbaric attacks still festers today," she said.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

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