Standard Lemma guide

insincere

adj · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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  • rhymes with -ɪə(ɹ)
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: IH2 N S IH0 N S IH1 R Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Not genuinely meaning what has been expressed; not sincere; artificial; factitious.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • Janice's furious glare showed that her apology was insincere.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

adjective

Meaning 2

lacking sincerity

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • a charming but thoroughly insincere woman
  • their praise was extravagant and insincere

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: sincere

History

Etymology

From Latin insincerus.

Across languages

Translations

27 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Armenian: կեղծ (keġc) — not sincere
  • Bulgarian: неискрен (neiskren) — not sincere
  • Czech: neupřímný — not sincere
  • Esperanto: malsincera — not sincere
  • Finnish: epärehellinen — not sincere
  • Finnish: vilpillinen — not sincere
  • German: unaufrichtig — not sincere
  • Gothic: 𐌷𐌹𐌽𐌳𐌰𐍂𐍅𐌴𐌹𐍃 (hindarweis) — not sincere
  • Greek: ανειλικρινής (aneilikrinís) — not sincere
  • Greek: υστερόβουλος (ysteróvoulos) — not sincere
  • Hindi: ढोंगी (ḍhoṅgī) — not sincere
  • Hungarian: őszintétlen — not sincere
  • Māori: rūkahu — not sincere
  • Māori: rūpahu — not sincere
  • Māori: kōpūngahuru — not sincere
  • Māori: kōpūrau — not sincere
  • Khiamniungan Naga: tǖkāngkāng — not sincere
  • Polish: nieszczery — not sincere
  • Portuguese: falso — not sincere
  • Portuguese: insincero — not sincere
  • Romanian: nesincer — not sincere
  • Russian: неи́скренний (neískrennij) — not sincere
  • Spanish: falso — not sincere
  • Spanish: insincero — not sincere
  • Turkish: samimiyetsiz — not sincere
  • Ukrainian: нещи́рий (neščýryj) — not sincere
  • Welsh: blaentafod — not sincere