Link Centre Dictionary

honorable

ho·no·rable

UK/ˈɒn.ə ɹəbl̩/ US/ˈɒn.ɹəbl̩/ fairly common us

adjective

1.

not disposed to cheat or defraud; not deceptive or fraudulent

  • “honest lawyers”
  • “honest reporting”
  • “an honest wage”
  • “honest weight”
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2.

showing or characterized by honor and integrity

  • “an honorable man”
  • “led an honorable life”
  • “honorable service to his country”
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3.

used as a title of respect

  • “my honorable colleague”
  • “our worthy commanding officer”
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4.

adhering to ethical and moral principles

  • “it seems ethical and right”
  • “followed the only honorable course of action”
  • “had the moral courage to stand alone”
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5.

deserving of esteem and respect

  • “all respectable companies give guarantees”
  • “ruined the family”
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Origin

From Middle English honourable, from Old French honorable, honurable, from Latin honōrābilis, from honōrō (“to honour”); cognate with Italian onorabile, Spanish honorable. By surface analysis, honor + -able. In this sense, largely displaced Old English ārfæst.

Phrases

  • amende honorable
  • Ancient and Honorable Order of Turtles
  • do the honorable thing
  • Honorable Colonel
  • honorable discharge
  • honorable mention
  • right honorable
  • right honourable

Related words

Word family

See also

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.