on the level
English
editEtymology
editSee the Citations page for examples showing the sense evolution.
Pronunciation
editAudio (General Australian): (file)
Prepositional phrase
edit- (idiomatic) Honest(ly), sincere(ly), straightforward(ly), fair(ly).
- He looks like a used car salesman, but he's really on the level, so you can trust him.
- 1912 August, Christy Mathewson, “Play Clean Ball”, in Boys' Life, page 7:
- While I believe that the American people and the players want the game to be on the level, there are two or three things which, it strikes me, are not up to a high standard of honor.
- 1959, Marc Brody, Low Dive for Lola, page i. 9:
- "On the level, honey, I have an all-time, big-time need for coffee."
- Synonym of on the square (“discreet reference to freemasonry”)
Synonyms
edit- (honest, sincere, straightforward): above board, on the square, on the up and up