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Glite Dictionary
to lie through one's teeth

to lie through one's teeth

11 7.6
Say something that is not true in a bold, obvious way
  • idiom
  • Informal
: mentir descaradamente
  • And this clearly showed that they had lied through their teeth.
  • to tell a lie through your teeth
  • to say he's lying through his teeth
  • to know he's lying through his teeth

Examples

  • You look sincere, and you sound sincere, and you're lying through your teeth.

    Shanghai Surprise (1986)

  • The politician was caught lying through his teeth during the debate, and everyone noticed.

  • I think this kid is lying through her teeth.

    I Know Who Killed Me (2007)

  • Or you can lie through your teeth

    Blue Seduction (2009)

  • And he looked like a man lying through his teeth.

    Fiction book (1990)

  • The agent is lying through her teeth about the college wanting to buy it for faculty housing.

    Fiction book (1998)

  • Well, considering the Republicans lie through their teeth every chance they get.

    Blog text (22)

  • How do I know you're not lying through your teeth?

    Thy Will Be Done (2025)

  • Everyone makes mistakes, and if they tell you they don't, they are lying through their teeth.

    Blog text (3)

  • They were lying through their teeth about not recognizing this guy.

    A Brother's Honor (2019)

Synonyms

to lie
vsto lie through one's teeth
∞ 1.3

To say something that is not true to trick someone

is a deliberate bold untrue statement told without shame
to pull the wool over someone's eyes
vsto lie through one's teeth
  • Informal
7 8.2

To trick someone by hiding the truth

is an open shameless untrue statement not only hidden trickery
to speak out of both sides of one's mouth
vsto lie through one's teeth
  • Informal
1 9.9

To say different things to different people to hide the truth

is a single bold false claim rather than double sided inconsistency
to speak with a forked tongue
vsto lie through one's teeth
  • Informal
1 9.6

Say things that are not true to trick others

is a clear shameless untrue claim rather than ambiguous deceit
to give a line
vsto lie through one's teeth
  • Informal
8.0

To tell someone a false story to impress or trick them

is a bold shameless outright falsehood not aimed at flattery
to pull the long bow
vsto lie through one's teeth
  • Archaic
9.1

To tell a story in a way that makes what happened sound bigger or not true

is a plain shameless false claim rather than a tall story

Antonyms

to tell the truth
814 2.7

Say what really happened without hiding facts or lying

How Dishonest

to perjure
  • Formal
31 9.9
to lie through one's teeth
  • Informal
11 7.6
to fabricate
50 7.3
to lie
∞ 1.3
to fib
  • Informal
4 3.9

Surface Forms

lie through one's teeth infinitive
lying through one's teeth present participle
lies through one's teeth third person singular
lied through one's teeth past
lied through one's teeth past participle

Morphology

lie + through + one's + teeth

The meaning 'to tell an obvious and deliberate lie' is not transparently derived from the literal parts: while 'lie' is clear, 'through one's teeth' does not contribute a predictable compositional sense and functions as an idiomatic intensifier. The reference to 'teeth' is metaphorical and language-specific (other languages use different metaphors for shameless lying), so a B1 learner who knows the individual words would likely not infer the idiomatic meaning.

Etymology

Lie through one's teeth may come from the image of a person saying a lie so openly it seems to come 'through' their teeth, showing no shame. That's why it means 'to tell a bold, obvious lie'.