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How to tell someone is lying: all the signs

How to tell someone is lying (1)

Outlines all the clues for how to tell someone is lying, including the signs in the face, body, voice and language patterns that reveal lies.

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Nobody likes to be lied to. Serving up lies to someone else sends several negative messages: On the one hand, the person you are talking to does not seem to respect you enough to tell you the truth in the face. At the same time, trust is trampled underfoot. If you are deliberately deceived and lied to, your counterpart obviously does not value the relationship enough.

That alone can be a painful realization, but the next fact usually weighs even more heavily. Anyone who presents you with a lie always means that they do not believe that you can tell the difference. And this is one of the reasons it is important to know how to tell if someone is lying.

A lie is always an insult to your intellect and your knowledge of human nature. It is all the more important that you do not confirm such a prejudice, but recognize a lie as quickly as possible. Failure to do that increases the risk of being fooled over and over again.

The vernacular says whoever lies once is not believed , but if you keep getting away with your stories, you will keep trying and deliberately using lies to manipulate you and take advantage of it. In order to put an end to this game, not to get angry because you fell for a lie and to show that there is no point in lying to you, you need to recognize lies.

How to tell someone is lying: Three typical behaviors of liars

In order to detect lies, consider the way how your call is answered and behaves, take a close look. In a nutshell: If you have nothing to hide, if you don’t want to lie, you will usually answer with a simple no , for example to the question: “Did you steal the money from the till?”

Anyone who is not so strict about the truth will try various tactics to cover up what they have done. These three typical behaviors show how to tell if someone is lying.

How to tell someone is lying: Repetition

Inexperienced liars in particular often begin an answer by repeating the question or rephrasing it in a very similar way. Motto: “What do you mean – whether I stole the money from the cash register?”It is also typical for liars to repeat statements and entire answers. No, of course I don’t. It’s very clear that I didn’t do that. No, definitely not. The repetition is intended to confirm and clarify what has been said in order to cover up the lie. The same applies to exaggerated protests. If a statement is underlined and emphasized much too clearly, this can be an indication of a lie.

How to tell someone is lying: Reference

Your counterpart will refer to an earlier statement so as not to have to lie at this moment. So in his logic he is telling the truth now, although he is only pointing you to an earlier untruth. An example: “As I explained last week, I have nothing to do with the disappeared cash register!”Such a statement with reference to a previous lie is often easier because in your own perception you do not have to lie again. This, of course, is nothing more than whitewashing to justify a lie – if you notice this behavior, you can use it to spot lies.

How to tell someone is lying: Deflection

It is very likely that you can tell lies from the fact that the person you are talking to is going back a long way to answer an actually simple question – incidentally, a tactic that is often observed among politicians: Instead of a clear yes or no, you get to hear: “This is in In this context, a very legitimate question, thank you at this point, because it gives me the opportunity … “Here someone does not want to commit themselves and is avoiding a clear position. Either because he doesn’t have his own opinion or doesn’t want to make it public, but more often because he doesn’t want to come out with the truth and instead tries to distract you from the topic.

How to tell someone is lying: How face and body reveal it

Admittedly: There are some pretty clever liars , with whom the untruth has almost become flesh and blood, who not only lie without blushing , but who can hardly tell when they twist the truth again.

Fortunately, these professional swindlers are the exception and you probably have to deal with average casual liars in everyday life , who you can often see the signs – most likely directly in the face.

However, you should also pay attention to the overall situation and not put everyone under the general suspicion of lying who shows one of the following signs. This is often caused by stress and nervousness, as they arise when lying – but can also be caused by other circumstances.

Before you accuse your counterpart of lying, you should therefore consider whether the person you are talking to is possibly nervous for other reasons or whether he is currently lying to you brazenly.

We’ve gathered signs for how to tell someone is lying – but also show you what to look out for to avoid falsely accusing anyone.

Eyes and mouth don’t say the same thing

Words are relatively easy to influence and bend to steer a conversation in a desired direction or to twist the truth for your own benefit. However, it is difficult to reproduce what has been said with the eyes. This is particularly clear, for example, with a laugh, which can appear very warm in the lower half of the face – as long as the eyes do not laugh too, it is not meant honestly.

Caution: This behavior does not always involve malicious intent. In some situations you feel like you have to smile or laugh when you are not being honest. This is the case, for example, if you don’t want to put someone in an uncomfortable situation. The eyes do not radiate the smile in this case either, but in this case the lie is more of a nice gesture.

There is a lot of blinking, or none at all

We all blink, but the way and especially the frequency can be seen as an indication of a lie. If your interlocutor blinks conspicuously often or many times in quick succession, this can show that he is not really taking the truth very seriously. Because some people naturally blink more often than others, this is most likely to be noticed when you already know the person better and have a rough idea of ​​how often they blink normally. Likewise, if there is no blinking at all, this is generally not natural.

Caution: There are many external influences that can cause increased and frequent blinking. This ranges from increased strain on the eyes, for example because the person concerned has just read long and concentrated, to poor and dry air that irritates the eyes.

How to tell someone is lying: blushing

The classic among the signs of a lie: If you blush, you are ashamed of something and are probably very well aware of your own lie. The blushing is not always very pronounced, but in most cases it is easy to see. The advantage of unmasking a lie this way: It can hardly be suppressed. While one can try to withhold other gestures, the red cheeks reveal the untruth anyway.

Caution: Here, too, a little caution is advised, because as with blinking, there are different triggers for flushing cheeks. It is possible that the other person is uncomfortable with the whole situation, finds your question too personal, or is embarrassed about an answer.

How to tell someone is lying: The person keeps their distance

Since most people tend to feel uncomfortable with a lie, many unconsciously try to widen the distance so as not to be so close to the other person while lying boldly in their face. This can be expressed by taking a small step back, leaning back slightly on the chair, but also by crossing your arms in front of your chest, which creates a greater distance.

Caution: In order to recognize a lie from a distance, it is best to have a comparison value. Some people basically respect the area of ​​a conversation partner very much and therefore stand a little further away. Also note the general conditions. Leaning back in the chair can also show that it is feeling comfortable and superior.

The hand is held in front of the face

If the other person puts their hand in front of their face and thus covers their mouth or part of their face, this is often an unconscious attempt to protect themselves. In other words, he feels vulnerable right now because he has told you a lie and is now hoping that you won’t notice. The good news: Anyone who feels so uncomfortable about a lie that they want to hide is in truth a good character.

Caution: Another possible explanation: Too much honesty – the exact opposite of a lie. It can be a reflex when something slipped out that you’d rather keep to yourself. Almost like trying to grab the spoken word with your hands to keep it from coming out.

He moves too much

The nervousness that many feel when lying – especially if it is a bit bigger – often shows through body movements. Everyone knows the nervous feeling: You don’t know what to do with yourself, you get fidgety, you can neither stand nor sit. If you notice such behavior in the other person, he or she just feels visibly uncomfortable in his skin, which can speak for a lie. A quick glance of the eyes is also particularly noticeable, almost as if one were hoping for help from somewhere.

Caution: The changes that occur in the body of your counterpart are particularly relevant. Whoever moves a lot by nature does not automatically show a lie. However, if additional impulses suddenly occur – for example in response to a question – you should pay attention.

He disguises his own statements with his hands

I’m not quite sure, but … , If I remember correctly … or even my knowledge … can often harbingers be a lie. These are often supported by moving the hands, which are guided through the air, making indistinct gestures and thus further obscuring what is being said.What is said and body language tries to keep a way out to pull the head out of the noose in case the lie should be exposed. The excuse is then immediately ready – I said, I’m not sure and I didn’t know exactly anymore …

Caution: Not only liars, but also shy people often use these formulations and gestures. The answers can then be entirely honest, but are given less directly.

Your interlocutor fidgets with things or tidies up

Suddenly there seem to be more important things that grab your interlocutor’s attention. Interestingly, they are absolute nonsense – instead of being completely with you with his attention, utensils such as writing implements or the calendar are moved from A to B.

Caution: If you think you might just spot someone lying, consider the situation. If the person is tidying up their desk and is on their way to an appointment shortly before the end of the working day, the clearing doesn’t have to be related to lies.

The eyes are significantly enlarged

Wide-open eyes are associated with panic and fear, but also with surprise. If your interlocutor’s eyes widen after one of your questions, there are some signs that they would rather not answer them and that they may already be frantically preparing a suitable answer – which probably doesn’t have much to do with the unpleasant truth that they want to withhold from you.

Caution: dilated pupils are not always easy to recognize and the difference is usually difficult to tell, especially for the layperson. Another indication of whether you are being served a made-up answer is the amount of time between your question and the following answer. Few liars are good enough to answer like a shot. It takes most of them a moment to figure out the lie.

The body language is atypical

In order to be able to judge this, you not only need good powers of observation, you also need to know the other person well. Typically, we mirror the behavior of our conversation partner – the mirror neurons are responsible for this . You can recognize your counterpart while lying, if he or she no longer reflects your gestures. One possible explanation is that too much energy is being put into acting otherwise unsuspiciously.

Caution: Here, too, there may be other explanations, such as a lack of sympathy. In addition, if the conversation is short, there may be a lack of opportunity to look closely at the other person’s behavior.

Sweating profusely

This signal is often accompanied by flushing of the face and other symptoms, such as swallowing more often or trembling of the body. Physical reactions such as sweating or an increased pulse rate are ultimately what are measured in the lie detector test and are typical signs of a lie.

Caution: However, sweating is not in itself proof. High temperatures in summer, hormonal causes, an infection or the embarrassment of the situation itself can lead to a person sweating more. However, you should be suspicious if the other person has to help with the handkerchief while he or she answers you.

Listen to the acoustic characteristics to spot a lie

Observing body language, facial expressions and micro-gestures is one thing – but if you want to recognize lies, you don’t just need good powers of observation . It is true that the eyes are the mirror of the soul, but it is a common mistake to just look attentively in the face of the person you are speaking to and ignore other sensory impressions.

Even nervous switching from one foot to the other, playing with your hands or clinging them so convulsively to the back of a chair that the white ankles protrude – clear signals that something is wrong that can not be noticed by staring eye contact.

Acoustic features can be particularly helpful in recognizing lies. Instead of just looking, you should listen very carefully and pay attention not only to the content, but to small subtleties and differences. Clear your throat, an unexpected halt, a drawn-out Uhh , where you can almost hear the thoughts rattle.

Here someone wants to delay the answer and buy more time for themselves. A lie is just not as easy to cross as the truth. Especially when it is a spontaneous untruth that was not dealt with in advance.

For many, the pitch of the voice becomes significantly higher when lying , which can be a telltale sign that the other person is not really serious about you. In addition, the rhythm of speech and intonations change. Small differences that mean that what is said sounds strange, suspicious or simply different. The fact that your interlocutor wants to act out something is shown in his voice.

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