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Dictionary

Words, grammatical forms and meanings linked to the ontology.

bona fide en · ADJ

Pronunciation

  • /ˈboʊnə.faɪd/ (US)
  • /ˈboʊnəˌfideɪ/ (US)
  • (US) audio
  • (US) audio
  • /ˈbɑnə.faɪd/ (US)
  • (Australia) audio
  • /ˌbəʊ.nəˈfaɪ.di/ (UK)
  • (US) audio
  • /ˌboʊnəˈfaɪdi/ (US)
  • /ˈboʊnə.faɪd/ (Canada)

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from Latin bonā fidē (“in good faith”).

Meanings

  1. (not-comparable) In good faith; sincere; without deception or ulterior motive.
    • It is impossible to say how far this adherence to a creed is a bona fide reversion to a devout habit of mind, and how far it is to be classed as a case of protective mimicry assumed for the purpose of an outward assimilation to canons of reputability borrowed from foreign ideals. 1899, Thorstein Veblen, “Devout Observances”, in The Theory of the Leisure Class […] , New York: Macmillan, →OCLC:
    • Although he failed, the prime minister made a bona fide attempt to repair the nation's damaged economy.
  2. (not-comparable) Genuine; not counterfeit.
    • To Billy Byrne, then, Pesita was a real general, and Billy, himself, a bona fide captain. 1914 October – 1916 July, Edgar Rice Burroughs, The Mucker, Chicago, Ill.: A[lexander] C[aldwell] McClurg & Co., published 31 October 1921, →OCLC:
    • What intrigues us is what will happen when the ersatzes for the ersatzes come along. Will characters start substituting for actors, bona fide dogs for barking ladies; will people start looking at people again instead of television and at nature instead of at documentaries? 1955 June 30, “Ersatzes for Ersatzes”, in The Christian Science Monitor, volume 47, number 182:
    • Ulysses Everett McGill: I am the only daddy you got! I’m the damn pater familias! Wharvey Gal: But you ain’t bona fide! 2000, Joel Coen, Ethan Coen, O Brother, Where Art Thou?:
    • This is a bona fide Roman coin.

Forms

SpellingFeaturesLabelsSource
bona fyde alternative, obsolete lexicographic
bonâ fide alternative, rare lexicographic

Antonyms

bogus · mala fide · counterfeit

Deriveds

bonafidely

Relateds

mala fide · bona fides

Synonyms

sincere · genuine · authentic

Translations (51)

de glaubhaft (done in good faith) · da i god tro (done in good faith) · ar عن حسن نيَة (done in good faith) · tr samimiyetle (done in good faith) · is ósvikinn (genuine) · de ehrlich gemeint (done in good faith) · cs bona fide (done in good faith) · de original (genuine) · fr authentique (genuine) · de echt (done in good faith) · nb i god tro (done in good faith) · pt em boa fé (done in good faith) · fr de bonne foi (done in good faith) · de wahrhaftig (genuine) · es de buena fe (done in good faith) · cs pravý (genuine) · no autentisk (genuine) · cs v dobrém úmyslu (done in good faith) · fi vilpitön (done in good faith) · no ekte (genuine) · hu igazi (genuine) · tr iyi niyetle (done in good faith) · is gerður í góðri trú (done in good faith) · sm pona fite (done in good faith) · it genuino (genuine) · it in buona fede (done in good faith) · sm aoga (genuine) · nn i god tru (done in good faith) · de authentisch (genuine) · sv äkta (genuine) · fr véritable (genuine) · pl prawdziwy (genuine) · sk pravý (genuine) · hu jóhiszemű (done in good faith) · hu valódi (genuine) · ru добросо́вестный (done in good faith) · de glaubwürdig (done in good faith) · pt genuíno (genuine) · sm i le lelei faʻatuatua (done in good faith) · ru настоя́щий (genuine) · nb bona fide (done in good faith) · nn bona fide (done in good faith) · uk добросо́вісний (done in good faith) · cmn 善意 (done in good faith) · da bona fide (done in good faith) · nl echt (genuine) · nl oprecht (done in good faith) · it autentico (genuine) · sk dobre myslený (done in good faith) · fi aito (genuine) · de echt (genuine)

bona fide en · ADV

Pronunciation

  • /ˈboʊnə.faɪd/ (US)
  • /ˈboʊnəˌfideɪ/ (US)
  • (US) audio
  • (US) audio
  • /ˈbɑnə.faɪd/ (US)
  • (Australia) audio
  • /ˌbəʊ.nəˈfaɪ.di/ (UK)
  • (US) audio
  • /ˌboʊnəˈfaɪdi/ (US)
  • /ˈboʊnə.faɪd/ (Canada)

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from Latin bonā fidē (“in good faith”).

Meanings

  1. (not-comparable) In good faith; genuinely, sincerely.
    • But by the knots I am speaking of, may it please your reverences to believe, that I mean good, honest, devilish tight, hard knots, made bona fide, as Obadiah made his; […] 1761, [Laurence Sterne], chapter X, in The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman, volume III, London: […] R[obert] and J[ames] Dodsley […], →OCLC, pages 29–30:
    • Let thinking people, then, judge what must be the fate of a church, whose fundamental doctrines are disbelieved by men of sense and inquiry, whose articles are well known not to be subscribed bonâ fide by those who officiate in it […]. 1791, Joseph Priestley, Letters to Burke, section XII:

Forms

SpellingFeaturesLabelsSource
bona fyde alternative, obsolete lexicographic
bonâ fide alternative, rare lexicographic

Synonyms

bonafidely

Translations (4)

de in gutem Glauben (done in good faith; genuinely; sincerely) · de auf Treu und Glauben (done in good faith; genuinely; sincerely) · de guten Glaubens (done in good faith; genuinely; sincerely) · hu jóhiszeműen (done in good faith; genuinely; sincerely)