half-truth

noun

1
: a statement that is only partially true
2
: a statement that mingles truth and falsehood with deliberate intent to deceive

Examples of half-truth in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Everybody is lying or telling half-truths the whole time in this show. Max Gao, Variety, 22 Feb. 2025 Related article Vance uses half-truths to lecture a European audience well aware of the threat of authoritarian rule During this short period of whiplash, by the worst battlefield estimates, up to 5,000 troops have been killed or injured on the frontlines in Ukraine. Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, 15 Feb. 2025 Tribune reporter Ronald Yates then revealed in 1976 that two witnesses were forced to tell half-truths and withhold vital information during Toguri’s trial. Kori Rumore, Chicago Tribune, 11 Feb. 2025 In his two days of hearings, Kennedy will offer excuses and half-truths, as well as full-on lies, anything to get approval. New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 29 Jan. 2025 After the Los Angeles fires, lies and half-truths about California's water policies and the state's emergency response spread at breakneck speed. Michael Gfoeller and David H. Rundell, Newsweek, 16 Jan. 2025 The gaslighting and half-truths left viewers with unanswered questions and a sense of manipulation. Giana Levy, refinery29.com, 31 Oct. 2024 That half-truth avoids the fact that warmer oceans generate stronger storms with heavier downfalls. Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 25 Nov. 2024 These half-truths, lies, distortions, and trickery were most troubling for me. Gary Franks, Hartford Courant, 8 Nov. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1628, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of half-truth was in 1628

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Cite this Entry

“Half-truth.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/half-truth. Accessed 28 Feb. 2025.

Kids Definition

half-truth

noun
-ˌtrüth
: a statement that is only partly true
especially : one that deliberately mixes truth and falsehood

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