See also: Ehrlich

German

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Etymology

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Inherited from Middle High German ērlich, from Old High German ērlīh, from Proto-West Germanic *aiʀulīk. Equivalent to Ehre (honour) +‎ -lich (-ly).

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /ˈeːrlɪç/, [ˈʔeːɐ̯.lɪç], [ˈʔɛɐ̯.lɪç]
  • Audio (Berlin):(file)
  • Audio (Austria):(file)

Adjective

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ehrlich (strong nominative masculine singular ehrlicher, comparative ehrlicher, superlative am ehrlichsten)

  1. (dated, except in certain contexts) decent, honorable, honest
    Synonyms: ehrenhaft, ehrbar, achtbar, redlich, anständig
    Er hat sich sein Vermögen mit ehrlicher Arbeit verdient.
    He earned his wealth by honest work.
  2. (now by far the commonest sense) honest, truthful, true
    Synonyms: wahrhaftig, wahrheitsgetreu, wahrheitsliebend, aufrichtig
    eine ehrliche Antwortan honest answer
    Um ehrlich zu sein, mag ich dieses Gericht nicht.
    To be honest, I don't like this dish.

Declension

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Derived terms

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Further reading

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