Who said a half truth is a whole lie

A quick Google search found several variances of the quote, for the most part attributed to Benjamin Franklin. Our next stop was the American Philosophical Society in Philadelphia. The organization was founded by Franklin, so they should know a thing or two about the man.

We were put in touch with Roy E. Goodman, the curator of printed materials at the American Philosophical Society Library. After hearing the quote, Goodman thought it sounded like something that could have come from Franklin, whom he called "the approachable Founding Father" and "Mr.

Average American" compared to his aristocratic contemporaries. Speaking of wine, Goodman told us that one of the quotes most often misattributed to Franklin is hanging in bars across the country: "Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy. But in moderation. Our esteemed readers wrote us that Franklin said, "Half a truth is often a great lie. Tweet from reader , Dec. Phone interview with Roy E. Frances M. PBS, " Name that Ben ," Department of State. Bridget Saunders,'' Maxims , accessed Dec.

The Principles of the Truth-O-Meter. Stand up for the facts! More Info. I would like to contribute. One Time Monthly Yearly. By Steve Contorno December 17, Read About Our Process. Kellyanne Conway stated on February 2, There was no massacre:. Hillary Clinton stated on September 27, the first presidential debate:. Says Donald Trump "started his career back in being sued by the Justice Department for racial discrimination because he would not rent apartments in one of his developments to African-Americans.

Half the truth is often a great lie. A lie that is half-truth is the darkest of all lies. A half-truth masquerading as the whole truth becomes a complete untruth. A half truth, like half a brick, is always more forcible as an argument than a whole one. It carries better. The most intangible, and therefore the worst, kind of a lie is a half truth. This is the peculiar device of a conscientious detractor. The best lies are always at least partially true. The whole truth is generally the ally of virtue; a half-truth is always the ally of some vice.

In battling evil, excess is good; for he who is moderate in announcing the truth is presenting half-truth. He conceals the other half out of fear of people's wrath. There is little hope for us until we become tough-minded enough to break loose from the shackles of prejudice, half-truths, and downright ignorance.

The shape of the world today does not permit us the luxury of soft mindedness. A nation or a civilization that continues to produce soft minded men purchases its own spiritual death on an installment plan.

Partial truths or half-truths are often more insidious than total falsehoods. A lie can travel half way around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes. The world has long observed that small acts of immorality, if repeated, will destroy character. It is equally manifest, though never said, that uttering nonsense and half-truth without cease ends by destroying Intellect.

Half-truths are like half a brick - they can be thrown farther. It is twice as hard to crush a half-truth as a whole lie. You must never believe everything they say about a person. Generally speaking, most of it will be lies, half-truths at best.

Half-truths are the devil's IOUs. The truths that seem most truthful, if you look at them from all sides, if you look at them close up, turn out to be either half truths or lies. Half-truths can be more pernicious than outright falsehoods.

Add a few drops of venom to a half truth and you have an absolute truth. Life is a system of half-truths and lies, Opportunistic, convenient evasion.

Gossip lies nine times and tells a half truth the tenth. Common sense, the half-truths of a deceitful society, is honored as the honest truths of a frank world. Every day we present the best quotes! Improve yourself, find your inspiration, share with friends. This website or its third-party tools use cookies, which are necessary to its functioning and required to achieve the purposes illustrated in the cookie policy.

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