chéng shí
honest
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他是一个诚实的人。
Tā shì yīgè chéngshí de rén.
He is an honest person.
诚实是做人的基本原则。
Chéngshí shì zuò rén de jīběn yuánzé.
Honesty is the basic principle of being a human being.
我们要做一个诚实的人。
Wǒmen yào zuò yīgè chéngshí de rén.
We should be honest people.
老实 (lǎoshí)
honest
诚恳 (chéngkěn)
sincere
虚伪 (xūwěi)
hypocritical
不诚实 (bùchéngshí)
dishonest
The Chinese word 诚实 (chéngshí) for "honesty" is composed of two characters: 诚 (chéng) and 实 (shí). 诚 originally meant "to be sincere" or "to be true to one's word". It is composed of the radical 言 (yán), which indicates that it is related to speech or communication, and the phonetic component 成 (chéng), which suggests the idea of "completion" or "fulfillment". 实 originally meant "real" or "true". It is composed of the radical 土 (tǔ), which indicates that it is related to the earth or the physical world, and the phonetic component 失 (shī), which suggests the idea of "losing" or "missing". When combined, 诚实 (chéngshí) conveys the idea of being true to one's word and acting in accordance with reality, hence its meaning of "honesty".
