honest

honest — adjective

1. describes a person who always tells the truth and does not steal, cheat, or dece

1.adjectiveA2
Definition

describes a person who always tells the truth and does not steal, cheat, or deceive other people.

Example

The mechanic gave Liam an honest estimate for the car repairs.

honest + estimate / quote — trustworthy business interaction

Aunt Rosa has always been an honest person who never tells lies.

describes a person's character trait

Common collocations
  • honest person
  • honest with
  • honest about
  • perfectly honest
  • completely honest
Synonyms
  • truthful

    focuses specifically on telling the truth in speech, while 'honest' is broader, covering character and actions

  • trustworthy

    emphasises reliability and dependability rather than truthfulness per se

  • upright

    more formal; suggests strong moral principles in addition to truthfulness

Antonyms
  • dishonest

    the direct opposite — habitually lying, cheating, or deceiving

  • deceitful

    stronger than dishonest; implies intentional trickery

Grammar Patterns

honest + with + person

honest + about + subject

Common Mistakes

She is an honest person because she showed genuine care.
She is a sincere person because she showed genuine care.
honest refers to truthfulness about facts; sincere refers to genuineness of feelings.

❌ 'He made an honest mistake, so we forgave him.' (This is acceptable usage, but 'honest mistake' means an unintentional error, not a 'truthful' mistake.)

2. describes a statement, opinion, or expression that is open and direct, showing w

2.adjectiveB1
Definition

describes a statement, opinion, or expression that is open and direct, showing what a person really thinks or feels without hiding anything.

Example

Mauricio gave an honest opinion about the design, though it was not what we wanted.

honest opinion — direct and open, even if unwelcome

Élise was completely honest with me about her plans to leave the company.

honest with + person + about + topic

Common collocations
  • honest opinion
  • honest answer
  • honest feedback
  • honest assessment
  • honest with
  • honest about
Synonyms
  • frank

    nearly identical in meaning, but 'frank' is slightly more formal and often implies directness that may be blunt

  • candid

    suggests openness without hiding anything, often used in formal or professional contexts

  • sincere

    focuses on genuineness of feeling rather than directness of expression

Antonyms
  • insincere

    pretending to feel or think something you do not

  • evasive

    avoiding giving a direct answer or opinion

Grammar Patterns

honest + about + topic

honest + with + person

honest + opinion/answer/feedback

Usage Note

This sense is commonly used with nouns that describe speech or judgment, such as 'opinion', 'answer', 'feedback', 'assessment'. Unlike sense 1 (TRUTHFUL), it does not describe a person's general character — it describes the quality of what is said.

Common Mistakes

To be honest, the soup is cold.' (overused as a meaningless filler)
Use 'to be honest' only when you are about to say something that might be unwelcome or surprising.
Idioms

to be honest

idiom

a phrase used before stating your true opinion, especially when it might be surprising or unwelcome.

To be honest, I did not enjoy the movie very much.

To be perfectly honest, we were hoping for a better result.

make an honest living

idiom

to earn money through legal and respectable work, without cheating or stealing.

He worked two jobs to make an honest living for his family.

The charity helps people find honest work so they can make an honest living.

honest mistake

idiom

an error that was not intentional and was made without any bad intention.

The waiter brought the wrong dish, but it was an honest mistake.

Sivan apologised for the mix-up and explained it had been an honest mistake.

honest!

idiom

Used to stress that you are telling the truth.

I saw the whole thing, honest!

Did you really finish the cake, honest?

honest to God/goodness

idiom

Used to emphasize that something is true.

Honest to God, I didn't take your keys.

Is that honest to goodness the whole story?

make an honest woman of somebody

idiom

To marry a woman, especially if she is pregnant from a relationship with you.

After the news, he decided to make an honest woman of her.

Did Tom make an honest woman of Sara before the baby came?

honest — adverb

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

All four words relate to honesty, but they highlight different aspects. HONEST is the broadest term — it covers both truthfulness in speech and integrity in action. TRUTHFUL is narrower: it focuses specifically on telling the truth, especially about facts. TRUSTWORTHY emphasises reliability and dependability — a trustworthy person keeps promises and can be counted on, but may not always be bluntly truthful. SINCERE is about genuineness of feeling rather than factual accuracy; you can be sincerely wrong about something. FRANK is about directness and openness, often to the point of bluntness. For example: 'The honest cashier returned the extra change.' (character/integrity) vs. 'The truthful witness described exactly what she saw.' (factual accuracy) vs. 'The sincere apology came from the heart.' (genuine feeling) vs. 'The frank review criticised the film openly.' (direct, blunt expression).

truthful ↗trustworthy ↗sincere ↗frank

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinOld FrenchMiddle EnglishEnglish

The word 'honest' entered Middle English through Old French 'honeste', meaning 'decent' or 'respectable'. The French word came from Latin 'honestus', which meant 'honoured' or 'respected', and was based on 'honor' — a person's good name, reputation, or dignity. In early English, 'honest' first described someone who was socially respectable. Over time, the meaning shifted toward moral integrity and truthfulness, which is how it is used today. The adverbial form 'honestly' appeared in the 14th century and later developed its sentence-adverb usage ('honestly speaking') in the 17th century.