untruth

U1N1T1R1U1T1H4
/ʌnˈtɹuːθ/

noun

A lie or falsehood.

Meanings

noununtruth (countable and uncountable, plural untruths)

plural untruths

  1. countableuncountableA lie or falsehood.

    Herald The prince was swept from the sight of the Achaean host—himself, and his ship likewise. ’Tis no untruth I tell.

    1926, Herbert Weir Smyth, “Agamemnon”, in Aeschylus, with an English translation, volume II, page 55
    2 more examples

    He added: "We've always had spin, especially from Government. But this is not spin. This is dishonesty and so it's our rail media's urgent responsibility to call it out because non-specialist journalists across the country will report this and gradually these untruths will be accepted.

    2022 January 26, Paul Stephen, “Network News: Government's IRP claims condemned as "dishonest"”, in RAIL, number 949, page 7

    It may tell you that the official currency of Switzerland is the euro (it’s actually the Swiss franc) or that Mark Twain’s Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County could not only jump but talk. A.I. researchers call this generation of untruths “hallucination.”

    2023 January 10, Cade Metz, “A.I. Is Becoming More Conversational. But Will It Get More Honest?”, in The New York Times, →ISSN, archived from the original on 14 Mar 2023
  2. countableuncountableThe condition of being false; truthlessness.

Synonyms & antonyms

Similar

nouna false statement

Broader

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Proto-West Germanic*untriuwiþu
  2. Old Englishuntrēowþ
  3. Middle Englishuntreuth
  4. Englishuntruth

Inherited from Middle English untreuth, from Old English untrēowþ and unġetrēowþ, from Proto-West Germanic *untriuwiþu and *ungatriuwiþu, equivalent to un- + truth. Cognate with Old High German ungitriuwida.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Ancient Greek ψεῦδος
  • ψεῦδος (pseûdos)lie or falsehood
Bulgarian лъжа, неистина
  • лъжа (lăža)lie or falsehood
  • неистина (neistina)lie or falsehood
  • погрешност (pogrešnost)the condition of being false
Czech nepravda
  • nepravdalie or falsehood
Danish usandhed
  • usandhedlie or falsehood
Finnish valhe, epätotuus
  • valhelie or falsehood
  • epätotuusthe condition of being false
French mensonge, menterie
  • mensongelie or falsehood
  • menterielie or falsehood
  • contrevéritélie or falsehood
German Unwahrheit
  • Unwahrheitlie or falsehood
Hungarian valótlanság, hazugság
  • valótlanságlie or falsehood
  • hazugságlie or falsehood
Irish ainfhírinne, ainbhfíor
  • ainfhírinnelie or falsehood
  • ainbhfíorlie or falsehood
Italian bugia, falsità
  • bugialie or falsehood
  • falsitàlie or falsehood
Norwegian Bokmål usannhet
  • usannhetlie or falsehood
Portuguese inverdade
  • inverdadelie or falsehood
Russian непра́вда
  • непра́вда (neprávda)lie or falsehood
Swedish osanning
  • osanninglie or falsehood
Welsh anwiredd
  • anwireddlie or falsehood

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with untruth

All rhymes →
Cite this entry
APA

untruth. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/untruth

MLA

“untruth.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/untruth. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “untruth,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/untruth.

Source: untruth on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.