reliable

[ri-lahy-uh-buhl]

adjective

1. that may be relied on or trusted; dependable in achievement, accuracy, honesty, etc..

   reliable information.

   Synonyms: consistent, authentic, trusty
   Antonyms: deceitful, questionable, undependable

reliable

/ rɪˈlaɪəbəl /

adjective

1. able to be trusted; predictable or dependable

Other Word Forms

• reliability noun
• reliableness noun
• reliably adverb
• nonreliable adjective
• nonreliableness noun
• nonreliably adverb
• quasi-reliable adjective
• quasi-reliably adverb
• ultrareliable adjective
• ultrareliablely adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of reliable¹

First recorded in 1560–70; rely + -able

Synonym Study

Reliable, infallible, trustworthy apply to persons, objects, ideas, or information that can be depended upon with confident certainty. Reliable suggests consistent dependability of judgment, character, performance, or result: a reliable formula, judge, car, meteorologist. Infallible suggests the complete absence of error, breakdown, or poor performance: an infallible test, system, marksman. Trustworthy emphasizes the steady and honest dependability which encourages one's confidence, belief, or trust: trustworthy and accurate reports.

Example Sentences

Artificial intelligence can miss critical warning signs and fail to detect psychiatric emergencies, yet because the chatbots show competence in some areas, teens might assume they are reliable for mental-health support, the study found.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Israel's retaliatory assault on Gaza has killed at least 69,546 people, according to figures from the health ministry that the UN considers reliable.

Read more on Barron's

A major challenge, however, is finding reliable methods to set up the initial quantum state that a simulation needs.

Read more on Science Daily

"The credit part of it also has to work right. You have to have reliable and transparent and scientifically defensible crediting systems."

Read more on Science Daily

The ministry, whose figures are considered reliable by the UN, does not specify the number of combatants killed but indicates that more than half of the deaths are minors and women.

Read more on Barron's

Related Words

• decent 
• decisive 
• dependable 
• good 
• honest 
• positive 
• predictable 
• respectable 
• safe 
• sincere 
• solid 
• stable 
• steady 
• strong 
• true