honorable

adjectivenouncommon in dialogue

United Kingdom//ˈɒn.ə ɹəbl̩//
United Kingdom//ˈɒn.ɹəbl̩//
United States//ˈɑn.ə.ɹəbl̩//
United States//ˈɑn.ɹəbl̩//

Behaving in a manner that shows honor; decent, having integrity.

adjective

1
Behaving in a manner that shows honor; decent, having integrity.
2
Worthy of respect; respectable.
In confinement ladies are attended, not by the ordinary doctors, but by women especially devoted to the calling, who regard their profession as honorable and humanitary.
3
Complying with cultural rules regarding honor; not provoking shame or disgrace.
That culture considered it no disgrace to be defeated in honorable combat.
Luxury was abolished. People lived in honorable marriage. All the women were chaste, faithful, and far from wantoners.
4
A courtesy title, given in Britain and the Commonwealth to a cabinet minister, minister of state, or senator, and in the United States to the president, vice president, congresspeople, state governors and legislators, and mayors.
Uncheered by friends, unhissed by foes, the honorable member blandly continued his speech […]
5
A courtesy title, given in the United Kingdom to all sons and daughters of viscounts and barons and to the younger sons of earls.

Etymology

From Middle English honourable, from Old French honorable, honurable, from Latin honōrābilis, from honōrō (“to honour”); cognate with Italian onorabile, Spanish honorable. By surface analysis, honor + -able. In this sense, largely displaced Old English ārfæst.

noun

1
A politician or other person who bears the title of "honorable".
These included a reception for the Congress participants, given by the city of Barcelona in a 14th century palace, with guards making room for the mayor and other honorables, […]

Forms

plural: honorables
comparative: more honorable
superlative: most honorable

Honolulu · A port in Oahu Island; the capital and largest city of…honor · Recognition of importance or value; respect; veneration (of…Honor · A female given name from English.

honorable · Behaving in a manner that shows honor; decent, having integrity.

honorary · Given as an honor, with no duties attached, and without…honors · At an excelling level in academics.honour · British, Canadian, Commonwealth, and Ireland standard…

The neighbouring pages — Alphabetical order follows the rules of the language, not byte values: an accent decides only between two otherwise identical words, and Spanish files Ñ as a letter of its own.