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Webster 1913 Edition

Honest

Hon′est

,
Adj.
[OE.
honest
,
onest
, OF.
honeste
,
oneste
, F.
honnête
, L.
honestus
, fr.
honos
,
honor
, honor. See
Honor
.]
1.
Decent; honorable; suitable; becoming.
Chaucer.
Belong what
honest
clothes you send forth to bleaching!
Shakespeare
2.
Characterized by integrity or fairness and straightforwardness in conduct, thought, speech, etc.; upright; just; equitable; trustworthy; truthful; sincere; free from fraud, guile, or duplicity; not false; – said of persons and acts, and of things to which a moral quality is imputed;
as, an
honest
judge or merchant; an
honest
statement; an
honest
bargain; an
honest
business; an
honest
book; an
honest
confession.
An
honest
man’s the noblest work of God.
Pope.
An
honest
physician leaves his patient when he can contribute no farther to his health.
Sir W. Temple.
Look ye out among you seven men of
honest
report.
Acts vi. 3.
Provide things
honest
in the sight of all men.
Rom. xii. 17.
3.
Open; frank;
as, an
honest
countenance
.
4.
Chaste; faithful; virtuous.
Syn. – Upright; ingenuous; honorable; trusty; faithful; equitable; fair; just; rightful; sincere; frank; candid; genuine.

Hon′est

,
Verb.
T.
[L.
honestare
to clothe or adorn with honor: cf. F.
honester
. See
Honest
,
Adj.
]
To adorn; to grace; to honor; to make becoming, appropriate, or honorable.
[Obs.]
Abp. Sandys.

Webster 1828 Edition

Honest

HON'EST

,
Adj.
on'est. [L. honestus, from honos, honor.]
1.
Upright; just; fair in dealing with others; free from trickishness and fraud; acting and having the disposition to act at all times according to justice or correct moral principles; applied to persons.
An honest man's the noblest work of God.
An honest physician leaves his patient, when he can contribute no farther to his health.
2.
Fair; just; equitable; free from fraud; as an honest transaction; an honest transfer of property.
3.
Frank; sincere; unreserved; according to truth; as an honest confession.
4.
Sincere; proceeding from pure or just principles, or directed to a good object; as an honest inquiry after truth; an honest endeavor; honest views or motives.
5.
Fair; good; unimpeached.
Seek seven men of honest report. Acts.6.
6.
Decent; honorable; or suitable.
Provide things honest in the sight of all men. Rom.12.
7.
Chaste; faithful.
Wives may be merry, and yet honest too.

HON'EST

,
Verb.
T.
on'est. To adorn; to grace. [Not used.]

Definition 2024

honest

honest

English

Adjective

honest ‎(comparative honester or more honest, superlative honestest or most honest)

  1. (of a person or institution) Scrupulous with regard to telling the truth; not given to swindling, lying, or fraud; upright.
    We're the most honest people you will ever come across.
    • Sir W. Temple
      An honest physician leaves his patient when he can contribute no farther to his health.
  2. (of a statement) True, especially as far as is known by the person making the statement; fair; unbiased.
    an honest account of events; honest reporting
  3. In good faith; without malice.
    an honest mistake
  4. (of a measurement device) Accurate.
    an honest scale
  5. Authentic; full.
    an honest day's work
  6. Earned or acquired in a fair manner.
    an honest dollar
  7. Open; frank.
    an honest countenance
  8. (obsolete) Decent; honourable; suitable; becoming.
    • Shakespeare
      Behold what honest clothes you send forth to bleaching!
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Chaucer to this entry?)
  9. (obsolete) Chaste; faithful; virtuous.
    • Shakespeare
      Wives may be merry, and yet honest too.

Synonyms

  • See also Wikisaurus:honest

Antonyms

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

honest ‎(third-person singular simple present honests, present participle honesting, simple past and past participle honested)

  1. (obsolete) To adorn or grace; to honour; to make becoming, appropriate, or honourable.
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Archbishop Sandys to this entry?)
    • Ben Jonson
      You have very much honested my lodging with your presence.

Adverb

honest ‎(comparative more honest, superlative most honest)

  1. (colloquial) Honestly; really.
    It wasn’t my fault, honest.

External links

  • honest in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
  • honest in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911

Etymology

From Old French honeste, from Latin honestus, from honor. For the verb, see Latin honestare to clothe or adorn with honour, and compare French honester.

Pronunciation

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