# What does ‘white lie’ mean?

To “white lie” means to a small, harmless untruth told to be kind. The distinction between 'white' (harmless) and 'black' (malicious) lies is old in English; Brewer's notes the traditional colour symbolism.

## What it means

- The distinction between 'white' (harmless) and 'black' (malicious) lies is old in English; Brewer's notes the traditional colour symbolism.

## Action steps

1. Common everyday moral shorthand.
2. Example: It was just a white lie to spare his feelings.

## Sources

- [Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898) — Internet Archive scan](https://archive.org/details/brewers-dictionary-of-phrase-and-fable)

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