--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: People can tell the truth much more…" description: "\"People can tell the truth much more freely when they're apparently lying.\" — Eric Idle" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/385/eric-idle-3734_lying_people-can-tell-the-truth-much-more-free_3212228.jpg" --- # People can tell the truth much more freely when they're… ![“People can tell the truth much more freely when they're apparently lying.” quote by Eric Idle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/385/eric-idle-3734_lying_people-can-tell-the-truth-much-more-free_3212228.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/385/eric-idle-3734_lying_people-can-tell-the-truth-much-more-free_3212228.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/385/eric-idle-3734_lying_people-can-tell-the-truth-much-more-free_3212228.jpg) > “People can tell the truth much more freely when they're apparently lying.” [Eric Idle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-idle/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Truth emerges more freely when someone pretends to lie. **In simple terms:** People speak truth when they seem to lie. Key Takeaway Use humor to reveal honesty. Themes truth deception communication Mood witty insightful Type philosophical observational When to use this quote - debates - conflict resolution - team meetings - creative brainstorming Key Concepts psychology social dynamics Questions to Reflect On - Why does pretending to lie lower defenses? - How can you create safe spaces for honesty? A Different Perspective Not always reliable. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Lying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lying/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) ## Related quotes > [“Sometimes we reject the people who tell the truth and it is not because they are wrong. It is because we can’t bear to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-joyce/sometimes-we-reject-the-people-who-tell-the-truth-and-it-is-not/) [Rachel Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-joyce/) > [Some people tell stories and some people tell the truth!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amber-williams/some-people-tell-stories-and-some-people-tell-the-truth/) [Amber Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amber-williams/) > [I wish I had Wonder Woman's magic lasso like her to make people tell the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kylie-bax/i-wish-i-had-wonder-woman-s-magic-lasso-like-her-to-make-people-tell/) [Kylie Bax](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kylie-bax/) > [“People will tell you the truth, if you really want to hear it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ottessa-moshfegh/people-will-tell-you-the-truth-if-you-really-want-to-hear-it/) [Ottessa Moshfegh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ottessa-moshfegh/) > [You need people around you who will tell you the truth and not hold anything back.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nev-schulman/you-need-people-around-you-who-will-tell-you-the-truth-and-not-hold/) [Nev Schulman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nev-schulman/) > [Only 3 Types Of People Always Tell The Truth..: KIDS the DRUNk and the ANGRY..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/only-3-types-of-people-always-tell-the-truth-kids-the-drunk-and-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Only 3 types of people tell the truth: Kids, the drunk and the angry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/only-3-types-of-people-tell-the-truth-kids-the-drunk-and-the-angry/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When people tell you that you're less-than and that you don't matter and that you're inferior, you internalize some of that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vivek-murthy/when-people-tell-you-that-you-re-less-than-and-that-you-don-t-matter/) [Vivek Murthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vivek-murthy/) > [“People will tell you what they want you to know.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/people-will-tell-you-what-they-want-you-to-know/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [Don't let people tell you that you can't do something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-hernandez/don-t-let-people-tell-you-that-you-can-t-do-something/) [Laurie Hernandez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-hernandez/) > [When to people tell the same lie..." "They are working together," Will finished](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/when-to-people-tell-the-same-lie-they-are-working-together-will/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [I don't like it when people tell me I'm wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvin-leung/i-don-t-like-it-when-people-tell-me-i-m-wrong/) [Alvin Leung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvin-leung/) > [How come she can say it so easy other people but she cant tell me?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james/how-come-she-can-say-it-so-easy-other-people-but-she-cant-tell-me/) [James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james/) > [“When people tell you that you can’t live your way, don’t believe them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-v-ciarrochi/when-people-tell-you-that-you-can-t-live-your-way-don-t-believe-them/) Joseph V. Ciarrochi > [Don't let other people tell you who you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-sawyer/don-t-let-other-people-tell-you-who-you-are/) [Diane Sawyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-sawyer/) ## More by Eric Idle > [“Life's a piece of shit, when you look at it, life's a laugh and deat's a joke, it's true: You'll se it's all a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-idle/life-s-a-piece-of-shit-when-you-look-at-it-life-s-a-laugh-and-deat-s/) [Eric Idle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-idle/) > [Having little money to spend was a valuable learning experience. My schooling also shaped my work ethic because while other children were listening to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-idle/having-little-money-to-spend-was-a-valuable-learning-experience-my/) [Eric Idle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-idle/) > [Americans like to think 'Python' is how English people really are. There is an element of truth to that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-idle/americans-like-to-think-python-is-how-english-people-really-are-there/) [Eric Idle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-idle/) > [ If you're famous, you have to \[be overly generous\], otherwise people say, "Eric Idle came in and only left me $4." I always tip… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-idle/if-you-re-famous-you-have-to-be-overly-generous-otherwise-people-say/) [Eric Idle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-idle/) > [At least in America, you have freedom of speech, which is a good thing. It's just a question of whether you're allowed to use…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-idle/at-least-in-america-you-have-freedom-of-speech-which-is-a-good-thing/) [Eric Idle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-idle/) > [You look just like you!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-idle/you-look-just-like-you/) [Eric Idle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-idle/) > [Many years ago I also bought a house in Provence for about 70,000 francs. It had no electricity or running water, and no road…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-idle/many-years-ago-i-also-bought-a-house-in-provence-for-about-70-000/) [Eric Idle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-idle/) > [No day of my life passes without someone saying the words 'Monty Python' to me. It's not bad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-idle/no-day-of-my-life-passes-without-someone-saying-the-words-monty/) [Eric Idle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-idle/) > [“sticks and stones will break my bones, but words will make me cry by myself in a corner for hours.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-idle/sticks-and-stones-will-break-my-bones-but-words-will-make-me-cry-by/) [Eric Idle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-idle/) > [I believe in the separation of church and planet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-idle/i-believe-in-the-separation-of-church-and-planet/) [Eric Idle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-idle/) > [I've got soggy thighs. It must be dinner time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-idle/i-ve-got-soggy-thighs-it-must-be-dinner-time/) [Eric Idle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-idle/) > [At least one way of measuring the freedom of any society is the amount of comedy that is permitted, and clearly a healthy society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-idle/at-least-one-way-of-measuring-the-freedom-of-any-society-is-the/) [Eric Idle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-idle/) > [The Minister of Transport issued this appeal to motorists: Can anyone give him a lift to Leicester?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-idle/the-minister-of-transport-issued-this-appeal-to-motorists-can-anyone/) [Eric Idle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-idle/) > [I think the special thing about Python is that it's a writers' commune. The writers are in charge. The writers decide what the material…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-idle/i-think-the-special-thing-about-python-is-that-it-s-a-writers-commune/) [Eric Idle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-idle/) > [ There's no gap between the writer and the performer, which is what I think makes \[Monty\] Python unique. Five or six people who write… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-idle/there-s-no-gap-between-the-writer-and-the-performer-which-is-what-i/) [Eric Idle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-idle/) [Explore all 122 Eric Idle quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-idle/) ## More Lying quotes > [There is something more important than any ultimate weapon. That is the ultimate position-the position of total control over Earth that lies somewhere out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lyndon-b-johnson/there-is-something-more-important-than-any-ultimate-weapon-that-is/) [Lyndon B. Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lyndon-b-johnson/) > [Against his own will, almost, Will felt himself understanding; he would have done anything, he thought, told any lie, taken any risk, to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/against-his-own-will-almost-will-felt-himself-understanding-he-would/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [Heaven lies around us in our infancy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-golding/heaven-lies-around-us-in-our-infancy/) [William Golding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-golding/) > [To me, the beauty of a quilt or a dress lies within the stitches and the thought of the person who made them. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie/to-me-the-beauty-of-a-quilt-or-a-dress-lies-within-the-stitches-and/) [Natalie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie/) > [Half the misery of human life might be extinguished if men would alleviate the general curse they lie under by mutual offices of compassion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/half-the-misery-of-human-life-might-be-extinguished-if-men-would/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [Jobs and money are never the primary cause of stress. Thinking, negative thinking causes stress. The real cause of all problems lie in our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-proctor/jobs-and-money-are-never-the-primary-cause-of-stress-thinking/) [Bob Proctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-proctor/) > [“People talk about books that write themselves, and it's a lie. Books don't write themselves. It takes thought and research and a backache and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/people-talk-about-books-that-write-themselves-and-it-s-a-lie-books/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [ \[Islam\] Leaves no room of human legislation in an Islamic state, because herein all legislative functions vest in God and the only function left… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abul-a-la-maududi/islam-leaves-no-room-of-human-legislation-in-an-islamic-state-because/) [Abul A'la Maududi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abul-a-la-maududi/) > [What is history after all? History is facts which become lies in the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-cocteau/what-is-history-after-all-history-is-facts-which-become-lies-in-the/) [Jean Cocteau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-cocteau/) > [If the media is sending girls the message that their value lies in their bodies, this can only leave them feeling disempowered and distract…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-siebel-newsom/if-the-media-is-sending-girls-the-message-that-their-value-lies-in/) Jennifer Siebel Newsom > [I just can’t, Nick, okay? Now, please give me a second to lie here in silence and bleed.” – Caleb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/i-just-can-t-nick-okay-now-please-give-me-a-second-to-lie-here-in/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [ The social \[media channel\] isn't about beauty contests and popularity contests. They're a distortion, a caricature of the real thing. It's about trust, connection,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umair-haque/the-social-media-channel-isn-t-about-beauty-contests-and-popularity/) [Umair Haque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umair-haque/) > [falsehood is not more unjustifiable than unsafe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fanny-burney/falsehood-is-not-more-unjustifiable-than-unsafe/) [Fanny Burney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fanny-burney/) > [There are no white lies, there is only the blackest of destruction, and a white lie is the blackest of all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/there-are-no-white-lies-there-is-only-the-blackest-of-destruction-and/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [It lies around us like a cloud- A world we do not see; Yet the sweet closing of an eye May bring us there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-beecher-stowe/it-lies-around-us-like-a-cloud-a-world-we-do-not-see-yet-the-sweet/) [Harriet Beecher Stowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-beecher-stowe/) [Browse all 13,166 Lying quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lying/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "People can tell the truth much more freely when they're apparently lying.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Eric Idle" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-idle/people-can-tell-the-truth-much-more-freely-when-they-re-apparently/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Lying" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-idle/people-can-tell-the-truth-much-more-freely-when-they-re-apparently/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/385/eric-idle-3734_lying_people-can-tell-the-truth-much-more-free_3212228.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/385/eric-idle-3734_lying_people-can-tell-the-truth-much-more-free_3212228.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/385/eric-idle-3734_lying_people-can-tell-the-truth-much-more-free_3212228.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“People can tell the truth much more freely when they're apparently lying.” — Eric Idle", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Eric Idle", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-idle/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "People can tell the truth much...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-idle/people-can-tell-the-truth-much-more-freely-when-they-re-apparently/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-idle/people-can-tell-the-truth-much-more-freely-when-they-re-apparently/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```