The phrase honest mistake has become a phrase in its own right, but the underlying meaning of honest here is definition 2 at wiktionary: (of a statement) True, especially as far as is known by the person making the statement; fair; unbiased. We use cookies to enhance your experience on our website, including to provide targeted advertising and track usage. For the verb, see Latin honestāre (“ to clothe or adorn with honour ”), and compare French honester. An honest mistake is a mistake made by a person with no wrong intention. From Middle English honest, honeste, from Old French honeste, from Latin honestus, from honor. ‘To be honest, it was hard for me to understand why people wanted me to hold the exhibition.’ Origin Middle English (originally in the sense ‘held in or deserving of honor’): via Old French from Latin honestus, from honos (see honor ). This is the British English definition of honest.View American English definition of honest.. Change your default dictionary to American English. Honesty definition: Honesty is the quality of being honest. All Free. when a self-absorbed a-hole tells someone his or her version of the truth without any regard for the person's feelings or self-esteem; usually done for the sole entertainment and self-fulfillment of the speaker with no benefit to the recipient except for reduced self-esteem (who needs self-esteem, really?) | Meaning, pronunciation, translations and examples Honesty is a facet of moral character that connotes positive and virtuous attributes such as integrity, truthfulness, straightforwardness, including straightforwardness of conduct, along with the absence of lying, cheating, theft, etc. Thus, it is an honest mistake. The content in the English Dictionary could be wrong as there are many words. i.e. Displaced Old English ferht (“ honest ”). … Find 70 ways to say HONEST, along with antonyms, related words, and example sentences at Thesaurus.com, the world's most trusted free thesaurus. See more. From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English honest hon‧est / ˈɒnɪst $ ˈɑːn-/ S2 W3 adjective 1 character HONEST someone who is honest always tells the truth and does not cheat or steal OPP dishonest He was a hard-working honest man. Honesty also involves being trustworthy, loyal, fair, and sincere.. Definition and synonyms of honest from the online English dictionary from Macmillan Education.. Definition of honest adjective in Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. Honest definition, honorable in principles, intentions, and actions; upright and fair: an honest person. English Etymology . Honest mistake meaning. honest - WordReference English dictionary, questions, discussion and forums. Honest without regard to hurting the person's feelings. Let us know if you have ever made any honest mistake in the comment section. Honesty is valued in many ethnic and religious cultures. Pronunciation (Received Pronunciation) IPA : /ˈɒnɪst/ Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more.