candid
adjective · noun
Simple meaning
Honest and direct, even when it's awkward.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
kanduhdSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈkændəd
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
adjective
Impartial and free from prejudice.
Straightforward, open and sincere.
Not posed or rehearsed.
noun
A spontaneous or unposed photograph.
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: Impartial and free from prejudice.
Used this way, candid is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- No strong connotation
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
Share your sentence
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
Synonyms
Sense: impartial and free from prejudice
Word Forms
Candid · Candidly · Candour
Where This Word Comes From
From Latin 'candidus' (white, pure), the sense of clear, unclouded honesty came later.
Use This Word
See how this word sounds in a real sentence.
Ask Vocabaura
Understand the word your way.
What Does It Mean Here?
Words can change meaning depending on context.
Collections with this word
Themed sets you can browse for free.
Use it yourself
Knowing “candid” starts when you use it. Pick a next step, all free.
Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.