In everyday communication, idioms enrich our language, offering colorful ways to express complex ideas succinctly. This blog post explores 20 idioms specifically crafted to describe lies, providing a fascinating glimpse into the creative expressions used universally to convey deceit.
Idioms That Describe Lies
1. Pull the wool over someone’s eyes
Meaning: Deceive someone by hiding the truth.
Example: He pulled the wool over her eyes.
2. Bend the truth
Meaning: Alter the truth slightly.
Example: Politicians often bend the truth.
3. White lie
Meaning: A harmless or trivial lie.
Example: She told a white lie to avoid drama.
4. Lie through one’s teeth
Meaning: Lie blatantly.
Example: He lied through his teeth in court.
5. Cook up a story
Meaning: Invent a false story.
Example: She cooked up a story effortlessly.
6. Give someone the runaround
Meaning: Mislead or deceive someone.
Example: The clerk gave me the runaround.
7. Pull a fast one
Meaning: Trick someone cleverly.
Example: He pulled a fast one at work.
8. Lead someone up the garden path
Meaning: Deceive or mislead someone.
Example: She led him up the garden path.
9. Throw dust in someone’s eyes
Meaning: Deceive by distraction.
Example: He threw dust in their eyes.
10. Pull someone’s leg
Meaning: Joke or tease by lying.
Example: I’m just pulling your leg!
11. Sell someone a bill of goods
Meaning: Deceive someone into buying something worthless.
Example: He sold her a bill of goods.
12. Take someone for a ride
Meaning: Cheat or deceive someone.
Example: They took him for a ride financially.
13. Cover up
Meaning: Hide the truth about something.
Example: The company covered up the scandal.
14. Fabricate
Meaning: Make up something untrue.
Example: He fabricated the whole story.
15. Bear false witness
Meaning: Lie or give false testimony.
Example: She bore false witness against him.
16. Spin a yarn
Meaning: Tell a long, far-fetched story.
Example: Grandpa spun a yarn last night.
17. Tell tales
Meaning: Spread rumors or exaggerated truths.
Example: He’s known to tell tales.
18. Pull the rug out from under someone
Meaning: Suddenly deceive or betray.
Example: He pulled the rug out suddenly.
19. Wolf in sheep’s clothing
Meaning: Someone who pretends to be harmless but is not.
Example: Trust him not; he’s a wolf.
20. Put up a smoke screen
Meaning: Distract or mislead from the truth.
Example: They put up a smoke screen during talks.
