Meaning & Analysis
Someone known for lying loses credibility to the extent that even when they speak truthfully, others still doubt them.
Insights
Loss of Trust
The proverb reflects the fragility of trust—once a person is branded a liar, their words are perpetually viewed with suspicion, even when honest.
Consequences of Dishonesty
It emphasizes the long-term consequences of deceit: even a single lie can poison one's reputation, making future truth indistinguishable from falsehood in the eyes of others.
Moral Accounting
Highlights how character is cumulatively judged—truth spoken by a known liar is tainted by past behavior, suggesting that moral capital, once lost, is difficult to recover.
Medieval and Classical Roots
The idea dates back at least to classical and medieval moral philosophy, where honesty was seen as a foundational virtue. The Rivers citation from 1477 reflects early recognition of this ethical logic.
Psychological Heuristics
The proverb captures a key psychological phenomenon: once trust is broken, the human mind tends to discount all future information from the source, applying cognitive heuristics like negativity bias and consistency expectation.
Social Sanction and Deterrence
Functioning as a social deterrent, the proverb warns against lying by showing the irreversible reputational damage it causes—casting dishonesty as self-defeating in the long run.
Moral Parallels in Folk Wisdom
Closely aligned with proverbs like 'He that once deceives is ever suspected,' it expresses a widespread cultural understanding of trust as a perishable social currency.
Rhetorical Devices
Paradox
The statement contains an apparent contradiction—that someone can be truthful yet still be disbelieved—which sharpens its moral impact and provokes reflection.
Antithesis
It sets 'liar' against 'truth' to underscore the tension between a person’s character and their speech, amplifying the gap between reputation and reality.
Maxim Form
The concise, aphoristic structure makes the proverb easy to remember and pass on, aiding its role in moral education and social regulation.
Transcription
Quotations
The reward of a lyar is that he be not beleuid of that he reherseth.
The Liar never is beleeeved, although an oth he take.
He that useth to lie, is not always beleeeved when he sayes true.
Lyers are not beleeeved when they speak truth.
A man by lying getteth this aduantage, that when he telleth truth, he cannot be beleeeued.
It being one of the punishments . . . of a Lyar, not to be believ'd when he speaks truth.
A lyer is not believ'd, though he swears, a truth-teller is believ'd, though he lies.
Do not be deceived by an old saying, That when one usually tells lyes, he is not trusted when he speaks truth.
Cross References
Related Proverbs
Original Scan
Used under CC BY-NC 3.0.