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honor system

American

noun

a system whereby the students at a school, the inmates in a prison, etc., are put on their honor to observe certain rules in order to minimize administrative supervision or to promote honesty.

Etymology

Origin of honor system

An Americanism dating back to 1900–05

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.

Just the honor system and a makeshift security camera I bolted to the top.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 18, 2025

This seems to mean that agencies are basically on the honor system as far as whether to spend their legally allocated money—but, really, who knows?

From Slate • Jan. 29, 2025

It was set up as an honor system intentionally.

From Salon • Jun. 20, 2024

Instead of fare gates, the light rail network here uses a modified honor system plus occasional spot-checks by transit workers.

From Seattle Times • May 28, 2024

Alex felt like he should take a number, but they were on the honor system, remembering who was there before them and who arrived after.

From "The Dead and the Gone" by Susan Beth Pfeffer

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023