说谎

• Pinyin: shuō huǎng
• Hanzi breakdown: 说 = 言 + 兑; 谎 = 言 (speech) + 荒 (desolate, wild) — wild/desolate speech

Meaning

To lie; to tell a falsehood. To deliberately state something untrue.

A common and direct verb for lying. Used across all contexts from child-rearing (别说谎) to legal testimony (在法庭上说谎). Related terms include 撒谎 (also 'to lie', slightly more colloquial), 欺骗 (to deceive), and 谎言 (a lie as a noun). Both 说谎 and 撒谎 are interchangeable in most contexts.

Examples

1. 孩子从小就被教导诚实待人，绝不能说谎。 From a young age, children are taught to be honest and never lie.
2. 他在调查过程中被发现曾多次说谎，严重影响了案件的处理进度。 During the investigation, it was discovered that he had lied many times, seriously affecting the progress of the case.
3. 她说谎说得太流利了，以至于周围的人一开始都没有察觉。 She lied so smoothly that the people around her didn’t notice at first.

Usage Guide

Context: ethics, law, parenting, everyday

Tone: negative

Do Say

• 研究表明，即使是年幼的孩子也有能力识别他人是否在说谎，这种能力随年龄的增长而增强。(Research shows that even young children are capable of detecting whether others are lying, and this ability strengthens with age.)
• 在正式的调查程序中，如果当事人被证实故意说谎，将面临相应的法律责任。(In formal investigation procedures, if a party is proven to have deliberately lied, they will face corresponding legal consequences.)

Don't Say

• 不能用 说谎 描述无意中的错误陈述 — 说谎 implies deliberate deception; use 说错了 for accidental incorrect statements or 误导 for unintentional misinformation

Origin & History

说 (say, speak) + 谎 (falsehood, lie)

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal