- not honest or fair; deceiving or fraudulent
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
dis•hon•est /dɪsˈɑnɪst/USA pronunciation
adj.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- not honest;
untrustworthy:I wouldn't do business with such dishonest car dealers. - showing lack of honesty:That commercial had a lot of dishonest claims.
dis•hon•est
(dis on′ist),USA pronunciation adj.
dis•hon′est•ly, adv.
- not honest;
disposed to lie, cheat, or steal;
not worthy of trust or belief:a dishonest person. - proceeding from or exhibiting lack of honesty;
fraudulent:a dishonest advertisement.
- Anglo-French, Old French deshoneste, equivalent. to des- dis-1 + honeste honest
- Middle English dishoneste 1350–1400
- 1. unscrupulous, knavish, deceitful, perfidious. See corrupt. 2. false.
- 1. 2. honest.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
dishonest /dɪsˈɒnɪst/ adj
'dishonest' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
bent
- chancer
- cheat
- chicanery
- corrupt
- crook
- crooked
- cross
- dirty
- distrust
- dodger
- ensnare
- faithless
- false
- frame-up
- fraudulent
- graft
- have
- impute
- industrial espionage
- jack up
- jiggery-pokery
- knave
- knavery
- lift
- maladministration
- misappropriate
- monkey business
- pickings
- rascal
- rascality
- rascally
- rogue
- roguish
- rort
- scamp
- sleaze
- straight
- theft
- twister
- unfair
- wrong 'un
- background
- bad apple
- bad egg
- bagman
- Better Business Bureau
- bushranger
- case
- casuistic