Lie facts for kids

Pinocchio, a symbol of untruthfulness.

A lie is something that someone says that is not true. People that are lying often want others to believe that the lie is the truth. People can have many reasons for lying, such as if they are hiding something, if they want something from you, or white lies. Some people are pathological liars.

Different kinds of lies:

Deception

Tricking someone into believing something with a lot of lies over a longer period. "The cult members were deceived by their leader."

Distortion

Getting rid of or adding details to a fact. If a scientist says that "The medicine is safe in small amounts", a drug company can distort it and say "The scientist says the medicine is safe".

White lies

Telling a small lie make people feel better or for other reasons which do not harm anybody or anything. Saying that a person likes what another person is wearing, even though they do not, is a white lie. White lies should not be confused with sarcasm.

Exaggeration

Saying that something is more or less than it really is, like saying "I am starving to death" when you are hungry but not close to dying. Also used in tall tales; "Our hero was three meters tall and strong as an elephant!" (making a story more fantastic).

Lying can only be done on purpose. If a person says something that is not true and does not know that it is not true, that person is making a mistake and not lying.

In culture

Close-up of the bronze statue depicting a walking Pinocchio, named Walking to Borås by Jim Dine

• Carlo Collodi's Pinocchio was a wooden puppet often led into trouble by his propensity to lie. His nose grew with every lie; hence, long noses have become a caricature of liars.

• The Boy Who Cried Wolf, a fable attributed to Aesop about a boy who continually lies a wolf is coming. When a wolf does appear, nobody believes him anymore.

Images for kids

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  A motivational poster about lying declares "An ostrich only thinks he 'covers up'"

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  Consumer protection laws often mandate the posting of notices, such as this one which appears in all automotive repair shops in California.

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  Plato presented arguments to justify the use of noble lies in his Republic.

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  Portrait bust of Aristotle made by Lysippos

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  A Torah scroll recovered from Glockengasse Synagogue in Cologne

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  St. Augustine by Carlo Crivelli

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  Darius I, imagined by a Greek painter, fourth century BCE

See also

In Spanish: Mentira para niños