by Jan Shoop
Today’s Reflections post is on the word honesty.
I’m sure you know what honesty means. However, did you know that it is synonymous with moral, ethical, principled, righteous, right-minded, respectable, virtuous, good, decent, fair, law-abiding, high-minded, upstanding, incorruptible, truthful, trustworthy, reliable, conscientious, scrupulous and reputable? (Oxford American Writer’s Thesaurus)
Many times, when I think of being honest I think of telling the truth, of not shading things to fit my preferences. It seems that honesty is a rare trait in today’s society.
The Oxford Dictionary of Current English defines honest as:
1. truthful and sincere
2. fairly earned through hard work
3. simple and straightforward
Honest is from the Latin word honestus meaning honorable, respectable and beautiful.
“If you tell the truth you don’t have to remember anything.”
Mark Twain
“No man has a good enough memory to make a successful liar.”
Abraham Lincoln
“The least initial deviation from the truth is multiplied later a thousandfold.”
Aristotle
“Dare to be true: nothing can need a lie: A fault, which needs it most, grows two thereby.”
George Herbert
“Honesty is the first chapter of the book of wisdom.”
Thomas Jefferson
In closing, I thought you might enjoy the Billy Joel song, Honesty.
Enjoy!
What’s your definition of honesty?
Thoughts? Feelings? Comments?
Interested in reading more great Reflections posts from Kids Without Stuff?
The following quotes are from: Quote Garden
