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Synonym Chooser

How does the noun honesty contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of honesty are honor, integrity, and probity. While all these words mean "uprightness of character or action," honesty implies a refusal to lie, steal, or deceive in any way.

When is honor a more appropriate choice than honesty?

While the synonyms honor and honesty are close in meaning, honor suggests an active or anxious regard for the standards of one's profession, calling, or position.

When would integrity be a good substitute for honesty?

The meanings of integrity and honesty largely overlap; however, integrity implies trustworthiness and incorruptibility to a degree that one is incapable of being false to a trust, responsibility, or pledge.

When could probity be used to replace honesty?

While in some cases nearly identical to honesty, probity implies tried and proven honesty or integrity.

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of honesty And there is a real hunger for honesty, for politicians to just speak the truth, to just give us some straight talk. Josh Dinner, Space.com, 2 July 2025 Meanwhile, the majority alliance continued to value physical strength and honesty, as members dominated this week's reward and immunity challenges. Haadiza Ogwude, The Enquirer, 2 July 2025 Many of us already know the components of a healthy relationship — things like strong communication, total honesty, and unwavering commitment. Mark Travers, CNBC, 29 June 2025 Known for her directness and honesty with players, the former Netherlands international makes decisions based on what is best for the team. Charlotte Harpur, New York Times, 27 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for honesty
Recent Examples of Synonyms for honesty
Noun
  • By taking these steps, your recommendation will effectively showcase your nephew's potential while upholding the integrity of the hiring process and fostering workplace harmony.
    Johnny C. Taylor Jr, USA Today, 8 July 2025
  • In a climate economy increasingly scrutinized for greenwashing and impact-washing, the integrity of carbon credits matters more than ever.
    Dianne Plummer, Forbes.com, 8 July 2025
Noun
  • And then reality crashes down around them in a series of scenes that expose the cruel hypocrisy of Iran’s corrupt system (which purports to uphold morality, but allows men in positions of authority to indulge themselves in egregious ways).
    Peter Debruge, Variety, 11 July 2025
  • The post did not address the morality of allowing biological males in girls sports.
    Jackson Thompson, FOXNews.com, 9 July 2025
Noun
  • That performance was enough to earn Player of the Game honors, as announced by the Sky after the contest.
    Michael Gallagher, MSNBC Newsweek, 15 July 2025
  • What an honor to be nominated alongside such incredible women.
    Shania Russell, EW.com, 15 July 2025
Noun
  • On the contrary, there’s a kind of sincerity to his reverence for beauty, for the erotic as art.
    arkansasonline.com, arkansasonline.com, 10 July 2025
  • So the director builds our modern discomfort with sincerity into his interpretation—an approach that meshes with the film’s sunny politics, which are loudly obvious from the jump.
    David Sims, The Atlantic, 8 July 2025
Noun
  • High-net-worth individuals, particularly business owners, professionals and investors, often face elevated exposure to legal risk simply by virtue of their visibility and success.
    Blake Harris, Forbes.com, 10 July 2025
  • Just by virtue of being president, Trump has bolstered this belief of mine.
    Carlo Versano, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 July 2025
Noun
  • What are your compliance and reliability requirements?
    Alex Gudilko, Forbes.com, 9 July 2025
  • The disinformation campaign was therefore not only aimed at an aircraft, but more broadly at a national image of strategic autonomy, industrial reliability and solid partnerships.
    Micah McCartney, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 July 2025
Noun
  • Ranch: The Ranch Snack Wrap delivers a satisfying burst of cool ranch goodness, with hints of garlic and onion.
    Gabe Hauari, USA Today, 11 July 2025
  • Research says doing them back-to-back seems to maximize their goodness.
    airmail.news, airmail.news, 10 July 2025
Noun
  • The pace and directness of Elanga, Callum Hudson-Odoi, Morgan Gibbs-White and Ola Aina have been at the heart of head coach Nuno Espirito Santo’s ethos: be fiercely difficult to break down, hurt teams with rapier-like counter-attacks.
    Paul Taylor, New York Times, 8 July 2025
  • Cassie Ventura Says Diddy Coerced Her Into ‘Freak Offs’ That Made Her Feel ‘Disgusting’ While Alexander-Arnold is a player who likes to create through his crossing and long-range passing, Frimpong prefers to use his speed and directness to get into dangerous positions.
    Graham Ruthven, Forbes.com, 13 May 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Honesty.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/honesty. Accessed 21 Jul. 2025.

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