bona fides

noun bo·na fi·des \ ˌbō-nə-ˈfī-ˌdēz , ÷ˈbō-nə-ˌfīdz \

|Updated on: 17 Jul 2018

Editor's Note: Did You Know?

Definition of bona fides

1 : good faith : sincerity

2 : the fact of being genuine —often plural in construction

3 : evidence of one's good faith or genuineness —often plural in construction

4 : evidence of one's qualifications or achievements —often plural in construction

See bona fides defined for English-language learners

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Recent Examples of bona fides from the Web

However Nelson's departure leaves the passing game without a bona fide deep threat who can regularly capitalize on Rodgers' whip of an arm.

— nate davis, USA TODAY, "Packers training camp questions: Besides Aaron Rodgers' return, why else might Green Bay surge?," 11 July 2018
And finally, even these Debbie Downers are smart enough to bite their tongues when Adrian Beltre's bona fides are reported.

— stefan stevenson, star-telegram, "Rangers Reaction: Enjoy the enjoyable even if your team stinks," 4 July 2018
Still, this moment was oddly important for Mexico: If its youngest players could go to London and beat the likes of Neymar, why couldn’t Mexico become a bona fide power when those young players reach their primes?

— andrew beaton, WSJ, "Mexico’s World Cup Ends in Round of 16," 2 July 2018
Opposing gentrification has become a way for people to display their anti-racist bona fides.

— The Economist, "In praise of gentrification," 21 June 2018
As a bona fide 90s kid raised by TV, Marc Summers was nothing short of a deity in my pre-teen eyes — a god of wisdom and slime.

— michele corriston, PEOPLE.com, "Double Dare's Marc Summers to Host a '90s Version of HQ Trivia: Find Out How to Play for $50K," 20 June 2018
The Croft character launched Jolie’s career as a bona fide action star at a time when few women got to star in more than one action franchise: After Tomb Raider came a sequel, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, Wanted and Salt.

— eliana dockterman, Time, "The Evolution of Lara Croft From Video Game Vixen to Empowered Movie Heroine," 19 Mar. 2018
That’s how Ryan, a bona fide movie star, came to spend a week behind the cash register at Books of Wonder, a children's bookstore in Manhattan.

— melissa locker, Southern Living, "12 Things You Didn’t Know About 'You’ve Got Mail'," 13 Mar. 2018
There won't be any new episodes of Stranger Things until 2017, but in the meantime, the cast is making the rounds on talk shows now that the show is a bona fide phenomenon.

— eliza thompson, Cosmopolitan, "Watch Eleven From Stranger Things Rap Nicki Minaj's "Monster" Verse," 1 Sep. 2016

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'bona fides.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Did You Know?

Bona fides looks like a plural word in English, but in Latin, it's a singular noun that literally means "good faith." When bona fides entered English, it at first stayed very close to its Latin use - it was found mostly in legal contexts and it meant "honesty or lawfulness of purpose," just as it did in Latin. It also retained its singular construction. Using this original sense one might speak of "a claimant whose bona fides is unquestionable," for example. But in the 20th century, use of bona fides began to widen, and it began to appear with a plural verb in certain contexts. For example, a sentence such as "the informant's bona fides were ascertained" is now possible.

Origin and Etymology of bona fides

Latin, literally, good faith

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1665

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

BONA FIDES Defined for English Language Learners

bona fides

noun

Definition of bona fides for English Language Learners

: evidence which shows that what you have said about yourself is true : evidence showing that you deserve a position or that you can be trusted

Law Dictionary

bona fides

noun bo·na fi·des \ ˌbō-nə-ˈfī-ˌdēz, commonly ˈbō-nə-ˌfīdz \

legal Definition of bona fides

: good faith

the fact that the plaintiff conducted an investigation demonstrated its bona fides
—Jeannette Glass Co. v. Indemnity Ins. Co. of North America, 88 A.2d 407 (1952) (dissent)