16 Signs That Someone Is Lying—and What They Don’t Want You to Know

It can be hard to know when someone is lying, but there are a few signs to look out for. Whether it’s through their body language, little inconsistencies in their story, or changes in their behavior, these clues can help you figure out if someone is being less than honest. Here are some simple ways to tell if someone is lying to you so you can stay aware and avoid being misled.

Inconsistent Stories

People who tell the truth don’t think twice when answering questions, so they’ll always have the same story anytime you ask them. However, people who keep changing details are more likely to be liars because they’re actively trying to change the narrative. This is because they’re trying to cover up their tracks, so they have difficulty maintaining their story.

Avoiding Eye Contact

While this varies from person to person, many lying people avoid eye contact because they feel guilty. Such people know looking into the eyes of the person they’re talking to will prompt them to confess, which they don’t want. So, they’ll try to avoid looking into the speaker’s eyes actively or will fidget around.

Contradicting Themselves

People telling the truth always have the same story whenever you ask them. They won’t change the details even if they’re minor, so you know they’re more likely to be telling the truth. Since liars are more likely to change the details of their stories, they often contradict themselves or catch themselves in a lie.

Change In Voice Tone

Many studies suggest a change in voice indicates the other person is lying. While this varies from person to person, increased stress can raise a person’s voice, so they’ll sound shrill. Since liars are often feeling socially stressed for covering themselves, a dramatic change in voice can indicate they’re not telling the truth.

Nervous Habits

Liars or people who fear they’ll be caught in a lie will typically avoid eye contact and start to shuffle nervously because they think being actively conversive will put them at a greater chance of being caught. They may even adopt nervous habits like fidgeting, shuffling, sweating, blinking, or dry mouth.

Stalling Tactics

You’ll notice people who are lying will often try to stall the conversation. For example, if you ask them about something they did, they’ll change the topic in hopes you get distracted enough to avoid that topic altogether. Stalling tactics are a big tell-tale sign that the person is not being honest.

Too Quick To Answer

Sometimes, liars prepare their answers beforehand. This is a great tactic to ensure they aren’t caught hesitating, but it indicates they expected the questions and were ready to answer. Being too quick to answer might not always be a clue, but it’s worth looking into when you suspect a person.

Evasive Answers

Similarly, liars will give small, vague answers when asked about something suspicious. People giving vague and basic answers think they’re being clever because they’re not actively avoiding the conversation (which can be suspicious) and not revealing too many details. However, evasive answers mean they’re actively hoping you’ll believe them, which can be manipulative.

Overly Defensive

Liars are always ready to defend themselves because they’re expecting people to call them out for lying. In other words, they think others will be able to find out the truth just from their words, so they’re extra careful and end up being defensive. This means they’ll blow up even on simple statements, which can be concerning.

Long Pauses

Hesitation has always been a big sign that someone is omitting the truth. Sometimes, liars won’t expect to be interrogated, so when asked anything, they’ll take a long pause because they’re thinking hard about how to stay off the hook. This means they don’t want to say anything that gets them in trouble, so they’ll hesitate before coming up with a satisfactory answer.

Body Language

You can often tell if a person is lying based on their body language. Liars tend to rely on their bodies overly, so they’ll move their hands a lot or make frequent gestures with their hands when speaking. Touching the face, crossing arms defensively, and fidgeting generally are signs that someone’s lying.

Lack Of Detail

Liars don’t want to give themselves away, so they’ll avoid giving too much detail when speaking. For example, if someone spends over their budget and is asked about it, they won’t share where they’ve been; instead, they’ll say they had to do some errands or bought some things. Vagueness is often a sign of a liar.

Changing The Subject

If someone suddenly shifts the conversation to a different topic, it might be because they’re trying to dodge a question or hide something. It’s a classic move to steer attention away from something that makes them uncomfortable or could expose a lie. Keep an eye out for these sudden changes—they often suggest the person isn’t being entirely truthful.

Sweating As A Stress Response

Sweating can be a natural response to the stress of lying. If someone is worried about being caught in a lie, their body might start to sweat more than usual, even if the room isn’t hot. Noticing someone sweating more during a conversation could be a sign that they’re feeling the pressure of hiding the truth.

Trying Hard To Make You Believe

One of the best ways to tell if someone is lying to you is if they are trying too hard to make you believe them. Sometimes, liars go to extreme lengths by providing too much information to sound more legitimate. So, next time you notice someone providing details that don’t add value to the main subject, they are probably lying.

Repeating Questions

Liars often have all the answers pre-planned in their heads, but if you start getting into the details, you will notice them starting to repeat your questions. Liars do not do that because they did not hear you well enough the first time. They do it to buy extra time to process the answer and deflect pressure.