Straightforward means there is nothing tricky about it: the thing goes straight forward, with no bends. Three ingredients and one pan; a form you can fill in on the bus.
The second sense is about people. A straightforward person tells you the price, says what they think and leaves you nothing to guess at. British speakers reach for it as understatement — "fairly straightforward" means easy, and "not entirely straightforward" means there is a problem waiting for you. The adverb is straightforwardly. Write it as one word: straight forward in two words is a direction, as in walk straight forward past the church.
1adjectivestraightforwardEasy to do or to understand, with no hidden complications.
“Fitting the shelf was straightforward once we found the right screws.”
synonyms: simple, uncomplicated
2adjectivefrank(Of a person or an answer) honest and direct.
“I'd rather have a straightforward no than be kept waiting.”
synonyms: frank, direct
No mystery here — straight plus forward, two plain English words pushed together. The picture is a road with no turnings on it. You can see the end of it from where you are standing, and that is exactly what the word claims about a task.
From straight + forward.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA
Practised in Everyday Adjectives, A Man Called Ove
First appears in chapter 27 of A Man Called Ove.
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