false (redirected from falseness)

false move and one false move

Fig. [even] a single movement that indicates that one is disobeying an order to remain still or in a nonthreatening posture. The robber threatened to shoot us if we made one false move.

See also: move

lull someone into a false sense of security

Cliché to lead someone into believing that all is well before attacking or doing someone bad. We lulled the enemy into a false sense of security by pretending to retreat. Then we launched an attack. The boss lulled us into a false sense of security by saying that our jobs were safe and then let half the staff go.

See also: lull, security, sense

sail under false colors 

1. Lit. to sail with false identification. (Pirates often sailed under the national flag of the ship they planned on attacking.) The ship, sailing under false colors, suddenly started to pursue our ship. Bluebeard the pirate was known for sailing under false colors.

2. Fig. to function deceptively. You are not who you seem to be. You are sailing under false colors. Tom was sailing under false colors and finally got found out.

See also: color, sail

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a false alarm

a situation when you think that something bad or dangerous is going to happen but you discover you were wrong Someone called to say there was a bomb inside the building, but it turned out to be a false alarm.

See also: alarm

a false dawn

something which seems to show that a successful period is beginning or that a situation is improving when it is not

Usage notes: False dawn is the light which appears in the sky just before the sun rises in the morning.

His victory in the French Open proved to be a false dawn after he failed to win another title for the next five years.

See also: dawn

a false economy

something that you think will save you money but which means you will have to spend a lot more money later She told me that buying a cheap washing machine was a false economy because it was more likely to break down.

a false start

a failed attempt to begin an activity or event

Usage notes: In a race, a false start is when one person starts before the signal has been given.

After a false start when he left his first job after only a week, he was offered some modelling work.

See also: start

lull somebody into a false sense of security  also give somebody a false sense of security

to make someone feel safe when they are not Wearing suntan lotion can lull people into a false sense of security and make them spend longer in the sun than they should.

See also: lull, security, sense

ring/sound hollow

if something someone says rings hollow, it does not sound true or sincere The claims they made two years ago that peace was just around the corner ring very hollow now.

See beat hollow

See also: hollow, ring

sail under false colours  (British & Australian) also sail under false colors (American & Australian)

to pretend to be something that you are not in order to deceive people

Usage notes: If a ship sails under false colours, it uses the flag of another country in order to deceive people.

Lewis was sailing under false colours - he never told her he was a journalist.

See also: colour, sail

under false pretences

if you do something under false pretences, you do it when you have lied about who you are or what you are doing The police charged him with obtaining money under false pretences.

See sail under false colours

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ring hollow also ring false

to seem dishonest, not true, or wrong The Rockets sounded like a defeated team - they talked of the possibility of a comeback, but the words rang hollow. Her characters and situations all ring false and her movie just seems painful and pointless.

Usage notes: often used in the forms a hollow ring or a false ring (a dishonest or not sincere quality): Her story about the hostages is certainly exciting, but it has a hollow ring.

Opposite of: ring true

See also: hollow, ring