lie1

[lahy] /laɪ/
noun
1.
a false statement made with deliberate intent to deceive; an intentional untruth; a falsehood.
Synonyms: prevarication, falsification.
Antonyms: truth.
2.
something intended or serving to convey a false impression; imposture:
His flashy car was a lie that deceived no one.
3.
an inaccurate or false statement; a falsehood.
4.
the charge or accusation of telling a lie:
He flung the lie back at his accusers.
verb (used without object), lied, lying.
5.
to speak falsely or utter untruth knowingly, as with intent to deceive.
Synonyms: prevaricate, fib.
6.
to express what is false; convey a false impression.
verb (used with object), lied, lying.
7.
to bring about or affect by lying (often used reflexively):
to lie oneself out of a difficulty; accustomed to lying his way out of difficulties.
Idioms
8.
give the lie to,
  1. to accuse of lying; contradict.
  2. to prove or imply the falsity of; belie:
    His poor work gives the lie to his claims of experience.
9.
lie in one's throat / teeth, to lie grossly or maliciously:
If she told you exactly the opposite of what she told me, she must be lying in her teeth.
Also, lie through one's teeth.
Origin
before 900; (noun) Middle English; Old English lyge; cognate with German Lüge, Old Norse lygi; akin to Gothic liugn; (v.) Middle English lien, Old English lēogan (intransitive); cognate with German lügen, Old Norse ljūga, Gothic liugan
Synonym Study
1.See falsehood.
British Dictionary definitions for give the lie to

lie1

/laɪ/
verb lies, lying, lied
1.
(intransitive) to speak untruthfully with intent to mislead or deceive
2.
(intransitive) to convey a false impression or practise deception: the camera does not lie
noun
3.
an untrue or deceptive statement deliberately used to mislead
4.
something that is deliberately intended to deceive
5.
give the lie to
  1. to disprove
  2. to accuse of lying
related
adjective mendacious
Word Origin
Old English lyge (n), lēogan (vb); related to Old High German liogan, Gothic liugan

lie2

/laɪ/
verb (intransitive) lies, lying, lay (leɪ), lain (leɪn)
1.
(often foll by down) to place oneself or be in a prostrate position, horizontal to the ground
2.
to be situated, esp on a horizontal surface: the pencil is lying on the desk, India lies to the south of Russia
3.
to be buried: here lies Jane Brown
4.
(copula) to be and remain (in a particular state or condition): to lie dormant
5.
to stretch or extend: the city lies before us
6.
usually foll by on or upon. to rest or weigh: my sins lie heavily on my mind
7.
(usually foll by in) to exist or consist inherently: strength lies in unity
8.
(foll by with)
  1. to be or rest (with): the ultimate decision lies with you
  2. (archaic) to have sexual intercourse (with)
9.
(of an action, claim, appeal, etc) to subsist; be maintainable or admissible
10.
(archaic) to stay temporarily
11.
lie in state, See state (sense 13)
12.
lie low
  1. to keep or be concealed or quiet
  2. to wait for a favourable opportunity
noun
13.
the manner, place, or style in which something is situated
14.
the hiding place or lair of an animal
15.
(golf)
  1. the position of the ball after a shot: a bad lie
  2. the angle made by the shaft of the club before the upswing
16.
lie of the land
  1. the topography of the land
  2. the way in which a situation is developing or people are behaving
See also lie down, lie in, lie to, lie up
lay1
Word Origin
Old English licgan akin to Old High German ligen to lie, Latin lectus bed

Lie

/liː/
noun
1.
Trygve Halvdan (ˈtryɡvə ˈhalðan). 1896–1968, Norwegian statesman; first secretary-general of the United Nations (1946–52)
Word Origin and History for give the lie to

lie

v.

"speak falsely, tell an untruth," late 12c., from Old English legan, ligan, earlier leogan "deceive, belie, betray" (class II strong verb; past tense leag, past participle logen), from Proto-Germanic *leugan (cf. Old Norse ljuga, Danish lyve, Old Frisian liaga, Old Saxon and Old High German liogan, German lügen, Gothic liugan), from PIE root *leugh- "to tell a lie."

"rest horizontally," early 12c., from Old English licgan (class V strong verb; past tense læg, past participle legen) "be situated, reamin; be at rest, lie down," from Proto-Germanic *legjanan (cf. Old Norse liggja, Old Frisian lidzia, Middle Dutch ligghen, Dutch liggen, Old High German ligen, German liegen, Gothic ligan), from PIE *legh- "to lie, lay" (cf. Hittite laggari "falls, lies," Greek lekhesthai "to lie down," Latin lectus "bed," Old Church Slavonic lego "to lie down," Lithuanian at-lagai "fallow land," Old Irish laigim "I lie down," Irish luighe "couch, grave"). To lie with "have sexual intercourse" is from c.1300, and cf. Old English licgan mid "cohabit with." To take (something) lying down "passively, submissively" is from 1854.

n.

"an untruth," Old English lyge "lie, falsehood," from Proto-Germanic *lugiz (cf. Old Norse lygi, Danish løgn, Old Frisian leyne (fem.), Dutch leugen (fem.), Old High German lugi, German Lüge, Gothic liugn "a lie"), from the root of lie (v.1). To give the lie to "accuse directly of lying" is attested from 1590s. Lie-detector first recorded 1909.

"manner of lying," 1690s, from lie (v.2). Sense in golf is from 1857.

give the lie to in Medicine

lie (lī)
n.
The manner or position in which something is situated, especially the relation that the long axis of a fetus bears to that of its mother.

Slang definitions & phrases for give the lie to

lie

Related Terms

the big lie, a pack of lies


give the lie to in the Bible

an intentional violation of the truth. Lies are emphatically condemned in Scripture (John 8:44; 1 Tim. 1:9, 10; Rev. 21:27; 22:15). Mention is made of the lies told by good men, as by Abraham (Gen. 12:12, 13; 20:2), Isaac (26:7), and Jacob (27:24); also by the Hebrew midwives (Ex. 1:15-19), by Michal (1 Sam. 19:14), and by David (1 Sam. 20:6). (See ANANIAS.)

Idioms and Phrases with give the lie to

give the lie to

Show to be false, refute, as in His black eye gave the lie to his contention that he hadn't been fighting. [ First half of 1500s ]

lie

also see: