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 will always work hard for you and I will always be honest and I will always be decent," she added.

From BBC

The sisters’ humble attitude helped forge an honest image.

From Literature

He said it was an "honest mistake" and got a valid MOT for the car and got it taxed as soon as he was made aware.

From BBC

This one feels different, however, because of the pressure from public finance watchdogs and experts to be honest with voters.

From BBC

"We started really well, but to be honest, the Santner-McConchie and that partnership, it was a good one, which took the game away from us."

From Barron's

Related Words

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