If you say that a person or their behaviour is dishonest, you mean that they are not truthful or honest and that you cannot trust them.
You have been dishonest with me.
It would be dishonest not to present the data as fairly as possible.
Synonyms: deceitful, corrupt, crooked [informal], designing More Synonyms of dishonest
dishonestlyadverb [usually ADVERB with verb]
The key issue was whether the four defendants acted dishonestly.
dishonest in British English
(dɪsˈɒnɪst)
adjective
not honest or fair; deceiving or fraudulent
Derived forms
dishonestly (disˈhonestly)
adverb
dishonest in American English
(dɪsˈɑnɪst)
adjective
not honest; lying, cheating, etc.
SYNONYMY NOTE: dishonest implies the act or practice of telling a lie, or of cheating, deceiving, stealing,etc. [a dishonest official]; deceitful implies an intent to make someone believe what is not true, as by giving a falseappearance, using fraud, etc. [a deceitful advertisement]; lying1 suggests only the act of telling a falsehood [curb your lying tongue]; untruthful is used as a somewhat softened substitute for lying, esp. with reference to statements,reports, etc. [an untruthful account]
OPPOSITE: honest
Derived forms
dishonestly (disˈhonestly)
adverb
Word origin
ME < OFr deshoneste, altered (after des-, di-1) < L dehonestus: see de- & honest
Examples of 'dishonest' in a sentence
dishonest
It would be dishonest to say otherwise.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
We went in at the right time and our dreams are ruined because of some dishonest people.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
We have dishonest people in our club and they will be smoked out.
The Sun (2016)
He says that he waited so long because so many people become dishonest when they wed.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
The dishonest man looked closely at the wrapper.
Pressley, Michael & McCormick, Christine Advanced Educational Psychology For Educators, Researchers and Policymakers, (1995)
She was a weak, dishonest person.
Diana Wynne Jones CHARMED LIFE (1977)
It can turn a grown man into a conniving, dishonest person.
Christianity Today (2000)
You are also deceitful, dishonest and manipulative.
The Sun (2011)
The films portray executives as scheming, manipulative and dishonest.
The Sun (2013)
I would go as far as to say it was dishonest.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
I was surrounded by dishonest people taking advantage of me.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
I find this behaviour despicable and dishonest.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
It's totally dishonest and people should know what is really going on when you help with these surveys.
The Sun (2008)
It is recognised that dishonest people tend to rationalise more than honest people; they fake the facts of reality.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
I'm sure you are not a wholly dishonest man.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
They're dishonest if they say they don't.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
But he is a nasty, dishonest, selfish man.
The Sun (2009)
She craves attention, is selfish, dishonest and manipulative.
The Sun (2014)
Fraud is often uncovered when businesses fail, as hitherto honest individuals are tempted into dishonest behaviour in an attempt to maintain their high quality of life.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
Nature, the science magazine, published a study which suggested that the culture of the industry encourages such dishonest behaviour.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
With one million employed in the wider financial services industry, that could mean anything up to 100,000 people are dishonest andflaky.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
In other languages
dishonest
British English: dishonest /dɪsˈɒnɪst/ ADJECTIVE
If you say someone is dishonest, you mean that they are not honest and you cannot trust them.
It would be dishonest to mislead people.
American English: dishonest
Arabic: غَيْرُ أَمِيـن
Brazilian Portuguese: desonesto
Chinese: 不诚实的
Croatian: neiskren
Czech: nepoctivý
Danish: uærlig
Dutch: oneerlijk
European Spanish: deshonesto
Finnish: epärehellinen
French: malhonnête
German: unehrlich
Greek: ανέντιμος
Italian: disonesto
Japanese: 不正直な
Korean: 부정직한
Norwegian: uærlig
Polish: nieuczciwy
European Portuguese: desonesto
Romanian: necinstit
Russian: бесчестный
Latin American Spanish: deshonesto
Swedish: oärlig
Thai: ไม่ซื่อสัตย์
Turkish: dürüst olmayan
Ukrainian: нечесний
Vietnamese: không trung thực
Chinese translation of 'dishonest'
dishonest
(dɪsˈɔnɪst)
adj
[person]不诚(誠)实(實)的 (bù chéngshí de)
[behaviour]不正直的 (bù zhèngzhí de)
(adjective)
Definition
not honest or fair
He had become rich by dishonest means.
Synonyms
deceitful
The ambassador called the report deceitful and misleading.
corrupt
corrupt politicians who took bribes
crooked (informal)
She might expose his crooked business deals to the authorities.
designing
the wily cunning of a designing hypocrite
lying
that lying hound
bent (slang)
a bent accountant
false
She was a false friend, envious of her lifestyle and her success.
unfair
nations involved in unfair trade practices
cheating
deceiving
shady (informal)
Be wary of people who try to talk you into shady deals.
fraudulent
fraudulent claims about being a nurse
treacherous
The President spoke of the treacherous intentions of the enemy.
deceptive
Her worst fault is a strongly deceptive streak.
unscrupulous
These kids are being exploited by very unscrupulous people.
crafty
That crafty old devil had taken us all for a ride.
swindling
disreputable
untrustworthy
His opponents still say he's a fundamentally untrustworthy figure.
double-dealing
Slimy, double-dealing politicians have betrayed us all.
unprincipled
the unprincipled behaviour of the prosecutor's office
mendacious
politicians issuing mendacious claims and counter-claims
perfidious (literary)
She says that politicians are a perfidious breed.
untruthful
Some people may be tempted to give untruthful answers.
guileful
knavish (archaic)
up to their knavish tricks again
Opposites
true
,
principled
,
upright
,
honourable
,
honest
,
lawful
,
law-abiding
,
trustworthy
Additional synonyms
in the sense of bent
Definition
dishonest
a bent accountant
Synonyms
corrupt,
crooked (informal),
rotten,
shady (informal),
fraudulent,
dishonest,
unscrupulous,
unethical,
venal,
unprincipled,
bribable
in the sense of corrupt
Definition
open to or involving bribery or other dishonest practices
corrupt politicians who took bribes
Synonyms
dishonest,
bent (slang),
crooked (informal),
rotten,
shady (informal),
fraudulent,
unscrupulous,
unethical,
venal,
unprincipled,
bribable
in the sense of crafty
Definition
skilled in deception
That crafty old devil had taken us all for a ride.