to give one the lie
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
To accuse him to his face of telling a falsehood.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “to give one the lie” mean?
To accuse him to his face of telling a falsehood.
Is “to give one the lie” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.