Dictionary / sincere
sincere
- adjective
- from Middle French
Genuine, honest, and free from pretense or deceit; heartfelt.
1 All current definitions
Every sense of “sincere” in current use, as recorded by Wiktionary. Older and obsolete senses are kept separately.
adjective
- Genuine, honest, and free from pretense or deceit; heartfelt.
I believe he is sincere in his offer to help.
- Meant truly or earnestly.
She gave it a sincere if misguided effort.
Older & obsolete senses (1)
- archaicClean; pure.
Cross-check: WordNet senses (2)
- adjectiveopen and genuine; not deceitful
- adjectivecharacterized by a firm and humorless belief in the validity of your opinions — also: earnest, solemn
2 History of the word
The etymology, the path the word travelled, and the words built from it.
The word’s journey, newest to oldest:
- English (today)sincere
- Middle Frenchsincere
- Latinsincerus “genuine”
- Proto-Indo-European*sem- “together” + *ḱer- “grow”
From Middle French sincere, from Latin sincerus (“genuine”), from Proto-Indo-European *sem- (“together”) (whence English sam) + *ḱer- (“grow”) (whence Latin Ceres, the goddess of harvest, etymon of cereal). Not from sine (“without”) + cera (“wax”), which is a folk etymology; see Wikipedia page.
Derivatives — words built from “sincere”
Related terms
Want to go deeper? See also “sincere” on Etymonline ↗
3 Original language
Where “sincere” came from before it was English.
4 Original meaning
What the word meant at the oldest point the record reaches.
Historical meaning — Webster’s 1913
A historical record, labelled as such: some of these senses are dated or have since shifted.
sincere a. [L. sincerus, of uncertain origin; the first part perhaps akin to sin- in singuli (see Single), and the second to cernere to separate (cf. Discern): cf. F. sinc<egrave/re.]
- Pure; unmixed; unadulterated.
- Whole; perfect; unhurt; uninjured.
- Being in reality what it appears to be; having a character which corresponds with the appearance; not falsely assumed; genuine; true; real; as, a sincere desire for knowledge; a sincere contempt for meanness.
- Honest; free from hypocrisy or dissimulation; as, a sincere friend; a sincere person.
5 Use it with confidence
Model sentences from the sources, matched to the meaning they show. Read each one aloud, then make your own in the game.
adjectiveMeaning: Genuine, honest, and free from pretense or deceit; heartfelt.
I believe he is sincere in his offer to help.
Tumid blustering, with more or less of sincerity, which need not be entirely sincere, yet the sincerer the better, is like to go far.1837, Thomas Carlyle, chapter III, in The French Revolution: A History […], volume II (The Constitution), London: Chapman and Hall, →OCLC, book I (The Feast of Pikes), page 19:
adjectiveMeaning: Meant truly or earnestly.
She gave it a sincere if misguided effort.
The message that through sincere teshuvah and resolution, light and gladness can be achieved by all, is most fitting for the opening of the Yom Kippur service.1996, Macy Nulman, The Encyclopedia of Jewish Prayer, page 161:
adjectiveMeaning: open and genuine; not deceitful
he was a good man, decent and sincere
felt sincere regret that they were leaving
adjectiveMeaning: characterized by a firm and humorless belief in the validity of your opinions
an entirely sincere and cruel tyrant
Three steps to owning it
- Pick one meaning above and read its model sentence out loud.
- Say who or what the word is about in your own life, then build a sentence around that.
- Check it against the definition: would a careful reader understand exactly that meaning?
6 The mastery game
Play it here, or print it and do it with pen and paper. At the end you will know the meanings, history, origin and original meaning — and you will have used the word yourself.
Say it, then spell it
sincere
/sɪnˈsɪə(ɹ)/ · sin·cere
Say the word out loud three times, slowly. Notice the stressed syllable. When you are ready, hide it and spell it from memory.
Activate Words · Word-mastery worksheet · Name: ______________________ Date: __________
sincere
/sɪnˈsɪə(ɹ)/ · sin·cere · adjective
Step 1 — Say it and write it
Say “sincere” out loud three times. Then cover the word and write it three times from memory.
Step 2 — Know every meaning
Read each definition. Then write it again in your own words.
Step 3 — Which meaning is it?
“I believe he is sincere in his offer to help.”
Circle the meaning used.
“She gave it a sincere if misguided effort.”
Circle the meaning used.
Step 4 — History and origin
Write the word’s journey back in time (each language and form):
Write three words built from “sincere” and what each means:
Step 5 — Original meaning
The earliest traceable form is Latin sincerus. What did it mean?
How does that original meaning connect to the meanings today?
Step 6 — Use it yourself
☐ I can explain its meanings ☐ I know its history ☐ I know its original language ☐ I know its original meaning ☐ I can use it confidently
Answer key — sincere
Which meaning, sentence 1: B. Genuine, honest, and free from pretense or deceit; heartfelt.
Which meaning, sentence 2: A. Meant truly or earnestly.
Origin: B. Middle French (Middle French sincere)
Journey: English sincere ← Middle French sincere ← Latin sincerus ← Proto-Indo-European *sem- + *ḱer-
Some derivatives: hypersincere, oversincere, supersincere, undersincere, unsincere
Original meaning: Latin sincerus — “genuine”
Built from: *sem- “together” + *ḱer- “grow”
Etymology: From Middle French sincere, from Latin sincerus (“genuine”), from Proto-Indo-European *sem- (“together”) (whence English sam) + *ḱer- (“grow”) (whence Latin Ceres, the goddess of harvest, etymon of cereal). Not from sine (“without”) + cera (“wax”), which is a folk etymology; see Wikipedia page.
Sources: Wiktionary “sincere” (https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/sincere#English), CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org; Princeton WordNet 3.0; Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913, public domain) via GCIDE. Worksheet from https://activatewords.com/w/sincere