Quote by Mark Twain

A half-truth is the most cowardly of lies.

A half-truth is the most cowardly of lies.

Summary

This quote means that a half-truth, or a statement that is partially true but leaves out important details, is even worse than a straightforward lie. While a liar at least takes ownership of their deception, someone who tells a half-truth is not only dishonest, but also shows cowardice by trying to deceive without fully committing to it. This quote highlights the moral deficiency of manipulating the truth in a way that misleads and conceals important information.

Topics

Lies

By Mark Twain

Liked the quote? Share it with your friends.

Random Quotations

But whether it be dream or truth, to do well is what matters

But whether it be dream or truth, to do well is what matters. If it be truth, for truth's sake. If not, then to gain friends for the time when we awaken.

Pedro Calderon de la Barca

Truth

A hug is like a boomerang - you get it back right away.

A hug is like a boomerang - you get it back right away.

Friendship

What I learned is that in business you must make decisions b

What I learned is that in business you must make decisions based on facts, not react with your heart.

Business

A sneer is the weapon of the weak.

A sneer is the weapon of the weak.

James Russell Lowell

Criticism

The mind profits by the wrecks of every passion.

The mind profits by the wrecks of every passion.

Edward George BulwerLytton

Mind

All charming people have something to conceal, usually their

All charming people have something to conceal, usually their total dependence on the appreciation of others.Enemies of Promise is Connolly's autobiography where he attempted to explain why he failed to produce the literary masterpiece which he and others believed he should have been capable of writing.

Cyril Connolly, Enemies of Promi

Ego

Life in the twentieth century is like a parachute jump; you

Life in the twentieth century is like a parachute jump; you have to get it right the first time.

Life

I was a man who was lucky enough to have discovered a politi

I was a man who was lucky enough to have discovered a political theory, a man who was caught up in the whirlpool of Cuba's political crisis...; discovering Marxism...was like finding a map in the forest.

Fidel Castro, Speech, Chile, Nov

Communism

Indeed this gentleman's stoicism was of that not uncommon ki

Indeed this gentleman's stoicism was of that not uncommon kind, which enables a man to bear with exemplary fortitude the afflictions of his friends, but renders him, by way of counterpoise, rather selfish and sensitive in respect of any that happen to befall himself.

Charles Dickens

Selfishness Self Centeredness Sensitiveness Stoicism

I would drive home and see people wearing my No. 34 jersey a

I would drive home and see people wearing my No. 34 jersey and wonder why, because I didn't feel worthy of that. And all the time I just knew people were staring at me, talking about me everywhere I went.

Home

My four older brothers were my favorite players. That's why

My four older brothers were my favorite players. That's why I got into football and sports.

Sin

I don't really distinguish between sympathy and honesty when

I don't really distinguish between sympathy and honesty when I'm writing. The two go together - I'm interested in inhabiting my characters, seeing the world through their eyes.

Sympathy