bald-faced lie
3
5.4
- noun
- /bɔld feɪst laɪ/
- Informal
:
mentira descarada
- He told a bald-faced lie about being at work when he was really at the party.
- telling a bald-faced lie
Examples
-
If you believe the players—and I do—the statement was a bald-faced lie.
Blog text (29) -
Saying that Obama spent less than Reagan is such a bald-faced lie that he doesn't even attempt it.
Blog text (13) -
Did you ever in your born days hear such a bald-faced lie?
-
To say that he took no personal risk is a bald-faced lie.
Blog text (3) -
His claim is a bald-faced lie.
Blog text (19) -
When Clinton said, "I did not have sex with that woman," and it turned out to be a bald-faced lie, he had very few defenders.
Blog text (11) -
Your first allegation, which I have bolded, is a bald-faced lie.
Blog text (18) -
Now we've caught Bush in a similarly high-profile, bald-faced lie.
Blog text (11) -
The statement that "site members applauded the email and rallied around the sender" is just a bald-faced lie.
Blog text (17) -
That's a bald-faced lie.
Blog text (34)
Synonyms
∞
2.7
A false statement told to trick someone
46
4.3
A statement that is not true
25
7.5
A statement that gives false information about something
16
5.5
A false statement
8
5.0
Stories that are completely untrue and told to trick people
A bold, obvious lie
Antonyms
How Blatant
Surface Forms
Morphology
The adjective 'bald-faced' (undisguised, brazen) combined with 'lie' (a false statement) yields the meaning 'an obvious, shameless falsehood' directly and compositionally. This is a straightforward adjective + noun combination following common cross-linguistic patterns, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents can infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
Bald-faced lie may come from the image of someone with a bare face and nothing to hide, so the lie is shown openly. That's why bald-faced lie means 'an obvious and shameless lie'.