genuine
/ˈdʒɛnjʊɪn
/adjective
1Truly what something is said to be; authentic: genuine 24-carat gold...
- Latham is showing us all that the next election will be a genuine race, a real battle.
- I want to be able to go over to Brick Lane in the East End to eat a real, genuine London bagel.
- The Real Madrid boss is one of the genuine enigmas of modern football.
Synonyms
authentic, real, actual, original, pukka, bona fide, true, veritable, unfeigned, unadulterated, unalloyed;
sterling;
attested, undisputed, rightful, legitimate, lawful, legal, valid, sound;
German echt
informal the real McCoy, the genuine article, the real thing, your actual, kosher, honest-to-goodness
Australian/New Zealand informal dinkum
rare simon-pure
1.1(Of a person, emotion, or action) sincere: a genuine attempt to put things right there was genuine affection in his voice...
- Sorry to a bit all over the place but I am feeling genuine distress and anger at all of this.
- The meeting is open to all with a genuine interest in having a say in the future of their community.
- It is a shame that governments do not have the same genuine compassion shown by ordinary citizens.
Synonyms
sincere, honest, truthful, unhypocritical, meaning what one says, straightforward, direct, frank, candid, open;
artless, natural, unaffected, guileless, ingenuous
informal straight, upfront, on the level
North American informal on the up and up
Australian/New Zealand informal dinkum
Derivatives
genuineness
/ noun ...- The honesty of the lyrics and genuineness of the performance can leave only the stoniest of souls unmoved.
- It's quite clear now that news broadcaster acted without concern for the genuineness of the documents.
- Personally, I've been a long-time opponent of the armed struggle, but that has never blinded me to the genuineness of the convictions of those engaged in it.
Origin
Late 16th century (in the sense 'natural or proper'): from Latin genuinus, from genu 'knee' (with reference to the Roman custom of a father acknowledging paternity of a newborn child by placing it on his knee); later associated with genus 'birth, race, stock'.
‘I rather choose to keep to the Language of the Sea, which is more genuine, and natural for a mariner.’ So wrote Woodes Rogers, the English privateer, in 1712. Genuine is used here in its original sense, ‘natural or proper’. The source of the word is Latin genuinus, from genu ‘knee’, with reference to the Roman custom of a father formally acknowledging that a newborn child was his by placing the baby on his knee.