Idioms

forked tongue

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forked tongue

A trait of someone who speaks in a dishonest or deceitful manner. Often used in the phrase "speak with (a) forked tongue." I wouldn't trust a thing Caitlin says, she's always speaking with a forked tongue. That's the last time I lend Brian any money, that guy has a forked tongue! It's becoming increasingly obvious that the senator spoke with a forked tongue during his campaign.
See also: forked, tongue
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
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References in periodicals archive
Unlike a serpentine forked tongue that depicts deceit and treachery, a human being is blessed with a tongue that has just one tip signifying the unity of truthful speech.
She found the candidate with the forked tongue after a week, but the wrestlers proved more difficult.
tradition of speaking with a forked tongue is long and dishonourable, as the actions taken by the U.S.
A lot of the stories are told with a forked tongue - something that few writers could get away with.
That old Red Indian saying `man speaks with forked tongue' springs to mind; the LACS has an ulterior motive, their own survival, and clearly cannot be trusted.
speaks then with forked tongue, and the lives of the poor workers do not improve.
RUBY says "fangs but no fangs" as she comes face to forked tongue with some very slippery - and very poisonous - characters.
The forked tongue has spoken for 800 years and more;
Those who try to trivialise the issue and muddy the waters with their inane talk of colour and free trade remind me of those cowboy and indian films many moons ago and the retort: "White man speak with forked tongue!" How outrageous when a person of the calibre of Mr Blair declares: "The national humiliation is we think the colour of our passports defines our sense of nationhood." Does this "weapons of mass destruction" silly man not recognise the intellectual vacuity of his insulting words?
0121 345 0600 THEATRE The Circus of Horrors An amazing amalgamation of bizarre and fantastic circus acts all woven into a sensational shock / horror story, performed with a forked tongue firmly in each cheek.
Summary: Many of us speak English with a forked tongue. Say that in a nice way.
Sinew-sewn and beaded in colors of dark blue, pink, red white-heart, pea green, and translucent; forked tongue; split and angled cuffs; length 10.75 in., late 19th century.
"That involved the removal of an ear, secondly the division of a tongue to create a forked tongue and, thirdly, the removal of a nipple."
"This is why you still need to whip out that forked tongue of yours just to pull down the rivals of your allies," she said.
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