Meanings
- archaicrareuncountableTruthfulness.First known use 19th c.
Truly may it be said, that her valuable qualities have been sanctified ; whilst her play of character has not been lost, but has been rendered more interesting than before. Every one who knows her is aware of her truthiness, and appreciates her kindness ; […]
1824, Joseph John Gurney, “Amelia Opie”, in Memoirs of Joseph John Gurney, volume 1, Norwich: Fletcher and Alexander, published 1854, →OL, page 242 - UScolloquialuncountableSuperficial or asserted truthfulness, without recourse to evidence.First known use 21st c.
Like the contemporary urban myth, tales of stomach frogs and "bosom serpents" persisted because they have truthiness.
2013, Mary Roach, chapter 8, in Gulp2 more examples
'Cause you're looking at a straight-shooter, America. I tell it like it is. I calls 'em like I sees 'em. I will speak to you in plain simple English. And that brings us to tonight's word: truthiness.
[2005 October 17, Stephen Colbert, The Colbert Report, season 1, episode 1 (television production)Even in the halls of Congress, economic arguments against immigration are losing their aura of truthiness, so pro-enforcement types are focusing on national security.
2006 August/September, “Immigration now, immigration tomorrow, immigration forever: reason's guide to reality-based reform”, in Reason, Reason Foundation, →ISSNSynonyms: truthlikeness, verisimilitude
- uncountablecomputingThe property of being truthy, i.e. evaluating to true in a Boolean context.
Usually, when you are receiving a Boolean value, you are most interested in checking its truthiness rather than its type.
2020, James Padolsey, Clean Code in JavaScript: Develop reliable, maintainable, and robust JavaScript, Packt Publishing Ltd, →ISBN, page 181
Synonyms & antonyms
nounSuperficial or asserted truthfulness, without recourse to evidence.
Origin
From truthy + -ness. Modern sense coined by American comedian and writer Stephen Colbert in October 17, 2005 on his show The Colbert Report.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Chinese Mandarin 感实性
- 感实性superficial or asserted truthfulness
Dutch waarheidigheid
- waarheidigheidsuperficial or asserted truthfulness
Esperanto verumeco
- verumecosuperficial or asserted truthfulness
French fausse vérité
- fausse véritésuperficial or asserted truthfulness
Hungarian látszatigazság, áligazság
- látszatigazságsuperficial or asserted truthfulness
- áligazságsuperficial or asserted truthfulness
Russian правдоподо́бность
- правдоподо́бность (pravdopodóbnostʹ)superficial or asserted truthfulness
Swedish sanningenhet
- sanningenhetsuperficial or asserted truthfulness
Cite this entry
truthiness. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/truthiness
“truthiness.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/truthiness. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “truthiness,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/truthiness.
Source: truthiness on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.