["European Journal of Social Psychology, EarlyView. ", "\nABSTRACT\nWhen being honest is expected to cause emotional distress to those it concerns, it can be difficult to practice. This study examines how honesty is understood and accounted for in situations of emotional, moral and relational complexity. Drawing on semi‐structured interviews with 16 Danish healthcare professionals (8 doctors and 8 nurses), we analyse accounts of engaging in difficult conversations with patients and relatives. Using reflexive thematic analysis, we identify two overarching themes comprising five subthemes. The first theme examines how communicative decisions are interpreted through different meanings of care, including concerns of preserving hope while fostering preparedness, establishing shared understanding and addressing avoided realities. The second theme describes how the professional role is invoked as a frame that makes engaging in difficult conversations both professionally legitimized and emotionally manageable. Together, the findings contribute an empirical account of how honesty is made sense of within interpersonal interactions perceived as potentially difficult.\n"]