“Any fool can tell the truth, but it requires a man of some sense to know how to lie well.”
Falsehood, iii
The Note-Books of Samuel Butler (1912), Part XIX - Truth and Convenience
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Samuel Butler 232
novelist 1835–1902Related quotes

“A thousand fools believe a lie, and it’s good as truth.”
Part 1, “Ashore” - Chapter 5 (p. 28)
A Door into Ocean (1986)

“You know there's no such thing as a complete lie. There's always some truth in there.”
Source: Will Grayson, Will Grayson

“Any damn fool can beg up some kind of job; it takes a wise man to make it without working.”
Source: Post Office (1971)

“1092. Children and Fools tell Truth.”
Introductio ad prudentiam: Part II (1727), Gnomologia (1732)

Variant: A sign is anything that can be used to tell a lie.
Source: Trattato di semiotica generale (1975); [A Theory of Semiotics] (1976)

“Any fool can know. The point is to understand.”

“If the truth is worth telling, it is worth making a fool of yourself to tell.”
Telling the Truth (1977)