English

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Etymology 1

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From Middle English forþright, forþriʒt, forþriht, from Old English forþriht (direct, plain); equivalent to forth +‎ right.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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forthright (comparative more forthright, superlative most forthright)

  1. Straightforward; not evasive; candid and direct.
    The witness was considered eminently credible thanks to her forthright answers.
  2. Frank, outspoken.
    • 2022 April 6, “Network News: Spring Statement: Sunak accused of making rail less competitive”, in RAIL, number 954, page 8:
      TSSA General Secretary Manuel Cortes was typically forthright in his criticism by claiming that Sunak had "blatantly failed" to cure "a growing tragedy", as "every single day, more and more families can't make ends meet".
  3. Markedly simple.
  4. Fixed; settled; decided.
  5. (archaic) Proceeding straight forth.
Derived terms
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Translations
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Noun

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forthright (plural forthrights)

  1. (archaic) A straight path.

Etymology 2

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From Middle English forthright, forþriʒt, forthricte, from Old English forþrihte (straightway, at once, plainly), from forþriht +‎ -e (adverbial suffix).

Pronunciation

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Adverb

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forthright (comparative more forthright, superlative most forthright)

  1. Expressly, frankly, unhesitatingly.
  2. At once, forthwith.
  3. Swiftly.
  4. (archaic) Straight forward, in a straight direction.

References

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