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• frank
  frank

  adjective

  direct and unreserved in speech; straightforward; sincere.
• Frank
  Frank

  noun

  a member of a group of ancient Germanic peoples dwelling in the regions of the Rhine, one division of whom, the Salians, conquered Gaul about a.d. 500, founded an extensive kingdom, and gave origin to the name France.

frank

¹ American  

[frangk] / fræŋk /

adjective

• franker,
  comparative
• frankest
  superlative

1. direct and unreserved in speech; straightforward; sincere.

   Her criticism of my work was frank but absolutely fair.

   Synonyms:

   blunt, naked, uninhibited, bold, free, unguarded

   Antonyms:

   restrained, inhibited, guarded

2. without inhibition or subterfuge; transparent; undisguised.

   The letter contained a frank appeal for financial aid.

3. Pathology. clinically evident; unmistakable.

   frank blood.

4. Archaic. liberal or generous.

5. Obsolete. free.

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noun

1. a signature or mark affixed by special privilege to a letter, package, or the like to ensure its transmission free of charge, as by mail.

2. the privilege of having letters, packages, etc., transmitted free of charge.

3. a letter, package, etc., transmitted free of charge by special privilege.

verb (used with object)

1. to mark (a letter, package, etc.) for transmission free of the usual charge, by virtue of official or special privilege; send free of charge, as mail.

2. to convey (a person) free of charge.

3. to enable to pass or go freely.

   to frank a visitor through customs.

4. to facilitate the comings and goings of (a person), especially in society.

   A sizable inheritance will frank you faster than anything else.

5. to secure exemption for.

6. Carpentry. to assemble (millwork, as sash bars) with a miter joint through the moldings and a butt joint or mortise-and-tenon joint for the rest.

frank ² American  

[frangk] / fræŋk /

noun

Informal.

1. frankfurter.

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Frank ³ American  

[frangk] / fræŋk /

noun

1. a member of a group of ancient Germanic peoples dwelling in the regions of the Rhine, one division of whom, the Salians, conquered Gaul about a.d. 500, founded an extensive kingdom, and gave origin to the name France.

2. (in the Levant) any native of western Europe.

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Frank ⁴ American  

[frangk, frahngk, frahnk, frahngk] / fræŋk, frɑŋk, frɑnk, frɑŋk /

noun

1. Anne, 1929–45, German Jewish girl who died in Belsen concentration camp in Germany: her diaries about her family hiding from Nazis in Amsterdam (1942–44) were published in 1947.

2. Ilya Mikhailovich 1908–90, Russian physicist: Nobel Prize 1958.

3. Leonhard 1882–1961, German novelist.

4. Robert, 1924–2019, U.S. photographer and filmmaker, born in Switzerland.

5. Waldo, 1889–1967, U.S. novelist and social critic.

6. a male given name, form of Francis or Franklin.

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frank ¹ British  

/ fræŋk /

adjective

1. honest and straightforward in speech or attitude

   a frank person

2. outspoken or blunt

3. open and avowed; undisguised

   frank interest

4. an obsolete word for free generous

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verb

1. to put a mark on (a letter, parcel, etc), either cancelling the postage stamp or in place of a stamp, ensuring free carriage See also postmark

2. to mark (a letter, parcel, etc) with an official mark or signature, indicating the right of free delivery

3. to facilitate or assist (a person) to come and go, pass, or enter easily

4. to obtain immunity for or exempt (a person)

noun

1. an official mark or signature affixed to a letter, parcel, etc, ensuring free delivery or delivery without stamps

2. the privilege, issued to certain people and establishments, entitling them to delivery without postage stamps

Frank ² British  

/ fraŋk /

noun

1. Anne . 1929–45, German Jewess, whose Diary (1947) recorded the experiences of her family while in hiding from the Nazis in Amsterdam (1942–44). They were betrayed and she died in a concentration camp

2. Robert . born 1924, US photographer and film maker, born in Switzerland; best known for his photographic book The Americans (1959)

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Frank ³ British  

/ fræŋk /

noun

1. a member of a group of West Germanic peoples who spread from the east bank of the middle Rhine into the Roman Empire in the late 4th century _ad , gradually conquering most of Gaul and Germany. The Franks achieved their greatest power under Charlemagne

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Usage

What does frank mean? Frank is used to describe something that is honest and straightforward, especially in speech, as in The fashion show judge gave frank criticism to every contestant, even if they didn’t want it. Frank can also be used to describe something that is direct and undisguised, as in My teacher was frank with me, saying bluntly that I had failed the course. Although used rarely, frank also refers to a mark put on letters or packages to signal they should be shipped for free. In the United States, franks are reserved for members of Congress and other high-ranking government officials. Frank can be used as a verb to mean to mark the mail as special, as in The post office has strict rules when it comes to franking mail for free delivery. Related to this sense, frank can mean to give free passage to a person, as in The diplomat was franked through the military checkpoint. Example: The ballet teacher’s advice was frank, but the blunt criticism was very helpful to the rising star.

Synonym Usage

Frank, candid, open, outspoken imply a freedom and boldness in speaking, writing, or acting. Frank is applied to one unreserved in expressing the truth and to one's real opinions and sentiments: a frank analysis of a personal problem. Candid suggests that one is sincere and truthful or impartial and fair in judgment, sometimes unpleasantly so: a candid expression of opinion. Open implies a lack of reserve or of concealment: open antagonism. Outspoken applies to a person who expresses their thoughts freely, even when this is inappropriate: an outspoken and unnecessary show of disapproval.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• franker
  noun
• frankness
  noun
• frankable
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Adjectives

• franker
  comparative
• frankest
  superlative

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Etymology

Origin of frank¹

First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English “not a serf, free; generous; unconfined; exempt from tax,” from Old French franc, from Late Latin francus “free,” originally Frank

Origin of frank²

An Americanism dating back to 1900–05; by shortening

Origin of Frank³

before 900; Middle English Franke, Old English Franca (cognate with Old High German Franko ), perhaps from the Germanic base of Old English franka spear, javelin, a weapon allegedly favored by the Franks

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Explanation

To be frank is to be honest. Also, it's a hot dog. Eating a frank at the ballpark is, to be frank, an all-American experience. If you're open, honest, and candid, you're frank — that can mean refreshing honesty or too much information. Frank also has some lesser known uses. It can also mean to stamp with a postmark, or to pass someone through for free — like how your museum job lets you frank your friends into the planetarium. The most delicious meaning is for what you may know as a dog, frankfurter, hot dog, hotdog, weenie, wiener, or wiener-wurst.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

frank Frank franker frankest

The antics can be frank, vulgar and even demeaning—which signifies that characters engage in practices that they think are expected of them, rather than the result of desire, or even convention.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 3, 2026

Finland's president and Norway's prime minister held a "frank and substantive" discussion with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday about efforts to end the war in Ukraine, the Nordic leaders said.

From Barron's ● Oct. 27, 2026

“These discussions are very frank and oddly not at all awkward,” Kao told the FBI.

From Salon ● Oct. 20, 2026

The show was frank in its portrayal of, among other subjects, social isolation, economic disparity, the immigrant experience and unconventional families.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026

Reserved people often really need the frank discussion of their sentiments and griefs more than the expansive.

From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë

For Frank Stallone, watching a film that chronicles his older brother's challenges was "very touching."

From Barron's ● Nov. 5, 2026

The language of the bill, sponsored in the Senate by Republican Clifford Case and Democrat Frank Church, was very specific:

From Slate ● Nov. 4, 2026

A second is owned by Frank Sytner, a former car dealer and race car driver who bought it in 2024 from another onetime race car driver in Brazil, who’d had it for decades.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 1, 2026

Frank Lampard's Coventry City lift themselves out of the relegation zone after beating struggling Sunderland, who remain rooted to the bottom of the Premier League table.

From BBC ● Oct. 31, 2026

Washington paid more than three times as much for “Mulatto Will” and Frank since he planned to train the two brothers to become personal attendants in his Mount Vernon home.

From "In the Shadow of Liberty" by Kenneth C. Davis

Kozinn and Sinclair paint her as a complex person, occasionally haughty or petty, but franker and more open with the press.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 12, 2022

Other nocturnal blossoms deploy scents like siren calls: The creamy whorls of the moonflower vine hint at vanilla and sunscreen, while the heavy bells of brugmansia are franker and muskier in aura, verging on narcotic.

From New York Times ● Oct. 11, 2021

Maybe it would open the door for a franker conversation about his functionality that he is as yet too ashamed to broach?

From Slate ● Jan. 25, 2021

It was, said Bobby Wagner, an ugly win by the Seahawks — a frank assessment for which wide receiver Tyler Lockett had a slightly franker amendment.

From Seattle Times ● Sep. 8, 2019

It would have been much easier, so much franker, had he said outright he was tired of his--friendship for me and wished an end to it.

From The Watchers A Novel by A. E. W. (Alfred Edward Woodley) Mason

In 2020 your sister published “Open Book,” which is one of the frankest celebrity memoirs I’ve read.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2025

In framing this as the frankest discussion of their marriage to date, they manage to get away with saying very little.

From Slate ● Jul. 14, 2020

Ellison’s closeness with Wright brings out some of his frankest early letters.

From The New Yorker ● Dec. 2, 2019

“This may be the frankest and most important presidential correspondence of this century,” he told the New York Times.

From Washington Post ● Aug. 23, 2018

Then he began his defence, very modestly and with frankest confession that he had been trapped by Dunmore into a pitfall, the existence of which he had never dreamed of.

From Cardigan by Robert W. (Robert William) Chambers

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