big lie

noun

variants: or Big Lie

|Updated on: 11 Jun 2018

Definition of big lie

: a deliberate gross distortion of the truth used especially as a propaganda tactic

Recent Examples of big lie from the Web

Telling the truth about a sham election may help puncture a big lie that keeps Maduro in power.

— The Christian Science Monitor, "The power of truth-telling about Venezuela," 8 June 2018
The idea that this was a peaceful protest is the biggest lie of all, because the basic tenets required for a protest in a democracy like the U.S. or Israel do not exist in Gaza.

— ronen manelis, WSJ, "The Truth About Hamas and Israel," 20 May 2018
Mixing dogged research and testy, sparring interviews with the charming pretender, Mr Cercas scrupulously tracks Mr Marco’s big lie.

— The Economist, "Fake manJavier Cercas probes Spain’s convoluted history," 2 Nov. 2017
The bigger problem for me is that these protests are fueling a big lie — the meme that police routinely shoot unarmed black men.

— dom giordano, Philly.com, "Sports media wrong to glorify athletes who snub national anthem," 13 Sep. 2017
This gets to an even bigger lie—the one that got us here in the first place.

— jamelle bouie, Slate Magazine, "The GOP Can Only Defend Itself by Lying," 26 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'big lie.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.