stretch the truth

English

Pronunciation

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Verb

stretch the truth (third-person singular simple present stretches the truth, present participle stretching the truth, simple past and past participle stretched the truth)

  1. (idiomatic) To exaggerate, often to the point where the truth is obscured or lost.
    • 1996 Fall, “From Sykes-Picot through Bandung to Oslo: Whither the Arab world?”, in Arab Studies Quarterly, volume 18, number 4, page 1:
      It would stretch the truth, but perhaps not tear it to tatters, to say that World War II was fought over oil.
    • 2003 November 9, Jim Armstrong, “NFL players skilled at other sports”, in Houston Chronicle, Sports, page 2:
      You think they exaggerate sometimes? You think they embellish things, stretch the truth, play loose with the facts?
    • 2009, Eric Kraft, Flying:
      "And you suspect them of stretching the truth? Or shrinking the truth?"

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