15 Ways To Know If Someone Is Lying To You In Seconds (And How To Tell)

Social interaction is a tricky thing. On one hand, you want to be able to trust those around you and have great relationships with the people in your life. But at the same time, it can be difficult when someone just won't tell you what they're thinking, they lie to keep their true intentions hidden.

But luckily, there are a few incredibly easy ways to identify when someone is lying that even the most untrained eye can notice! So read on for 15 quick signs of deception as well as some simple steps that might make all the difference in knowing if an individual is telling the truth or not.

1. They have trouble making eye contact.

In a face to face conversation, looking someone directly in the eyes is a natural instinct. However, if you notice that someone is avoiding eye contact with you during an important discussion, then it's likely that they're not being completely truthful with you.

This can be difficult though, because sometimes nervousness or self-consciousness may cause a person to look away from time to time, so it's important to cue in on their entire body language and demeanor when noting this behavior. If they are squirming or fidgeting during your interaction this could also signify dishonesty as well.

2. A guilty tone of voice.

It can be hard to hear that someone is being untruthful in passing, especially if they've been close friends for a long time. But when you do hear it, it's very important to note how their voice sounds.

It's easy to subtly notice the pitch of their tone and it can also be easy to set up a false base by pretending you didn't hear what they were saying at all, or by feigning disinterest and pretending that you're not paying attention to the conversation.

When you do catch a sign of dishonesty in their voice, it's important to take note of it and to see if they continue the same pattern throughout the rest of the interaction.

3. They are using excessive qualifiers.

When someone is lying to you, they will often try to over-explain themselves in order to give themselves and their statement credence. However, when this happens and the person is not being completely honest, they will tend to use a lot of unnecessary words; especially qualifiers such as "really" or "very". This is because they are attempting to make their statement sound more believable by adding in these unnecessary words.

When you notice yourself having trouble believing a person's story, it's important to pay attention to the inflections of their voice or the way they're speaking in general. If they aren't saying things like "In fact...", "And I mean..." or "Really," then it's a good indication that their story may be inconsistent with the facts.

4. Hesitation while looking away or blushing.

It's often easy to tell when someone is lying, but it can be especially difficult to notice if they are being deceptive through body language as well. One of the first signs that someone is telling a lie is a person's hesitation when recounting an event or telling a story. When someone hesitates mid-sentence, they may have trouble articulating their words and even with simple questions, which can make the person come across as being dishonest.

When you are talking to a person, they will almost always look at you while they're speaking, but when you suspect that they are not being completely honest with you, it's important to pay attention to the way their body language changes in reaction to your questions or statements. If they are looking down, fidgeting with their hands or avoiding eye contact then it's important to note these movements because they could be a sign of deception.

5. They change the story frequently.

In order to avoid lying, people often times change their story in an effort to make it appear more believable by adding extra details and explanations that may not have even been necessary. This can be difficult to notice, but if you notice that someone has just altered the account of a situation in which they were involved then it is a good indication that they are not being truthful with you.

6. They ignore a topic or avoid answering a question.

If someone is being deceptive, they will often find themselves confusing or avoiding the direct questions that you are asking them in order to avoid answering truthfully. This can be difficult because it's hard to know how someone will respond when asked a direct question, but if you notice that they aren't responding directly to your question then it could be because they're lying to you or they're dodging the issue.

7. Don't want to be caught on camera talking to an ex-boyfriend.

In a situation where it's clear that someone is lying, they will tend to avoid talking about certain topics or they may simply refuse to talk altogether. If you notice that someone is telling the same lie over and over whenever the question of their ex-boyfriend comes up, then it's a good indication that you need to remember that there are more than one way to tell a story and in this case, there is usually more than one truth.

8. Questioning their actions and behavior.

People who are keeping secrets are also likely to have conflicting behaviour and actions when around others as well because they must focus on making sure that no one finds out about their secret plans or habits. The biggest indication that someone is hiding a secret is that they will look to make sure that no one else is looking at them while they're doing something or they may even lie about what they were doing just to avoid drawing attention to their actions.

9. Excessive amounts of hand washing.

If you notice someone who's been holding the same object at social gatherings more than once, then it's a good indication that something has likely happened to make them concerned about the cleanliness of that specific object. For example, if someone always places their drink on the same side of their glass, it could mean that they are hiding something from their drink, such as a pill or some sort of drug.

10. An erratic pattern of behaviour that suddenly stops.

If a person's behavior suddenly stops, it's usually because they are hiding something from you. They will be nervous and uncomfortable when alone with you and in order to hide that fact, they will try to make themselves appear more sociable but in reality they may just be trying to avoid being seen by anyone else. This can be especially true if they are also avoiding eye contact and looking down at the ground while they're talking to you.

11. Lying to themselves.

When someone is lying to others, it's easy for them to lie to themselves as well because they are aware of their own dishonesty. If someone knows that their behaviour or actions are inconsistent with who they are, then it's likely that they will feel guilty about it and do something about it, whether by confessing or by being more honest with themselves, but if a person is lying all the time without ever feeling guilty about their lies then there may be something else going on which might lead them towards actually being truthful .

12. Giving multiple reasons for answers.

If someone is lying, they will often times give you multiple reasons as to why they are doing something and each reason will contradict the other. For example, if they are lying about where they were last night, the person may say that they were with a specific person because the two of them were set up on a blind date but then say that their date was called off at the last minute because their date had a headache. This is a good indication that there is more than one truth here and that one of those statements is not being entirely truthful with you.

13. Suddenly getting angry or shaking when asked specific questions.

Asking a certain type of question that triggers anger or anxiety in someone who is hiding something is a good way to have them start telling you things that you're not expecting. This could be because they've finally had enough of your questions or it could be because they simply have nothing to hide when asked certain questions and are unwilling to continue lying.

14. They avoid answering questions and give vague responses.

If someone is avoiding eye contact, refusing to talk all together or backtracking on statements, it's usually because they're not being completely truthful with you and this can make people begin to lose respect for them.

They may be trying to avoid having to try and defend themselves or they may be trying to just make sure that you don't find out what they're really thinking and doing.

This can be difficult because people often feel as though they have to hide every little detail of their life, but if you notice that someone isn't telling you everything that is going on, then it's a good indication that you might want to dig a little deeper.

15. They start acting strangely after being questioned about a particular topic.

If someone is being deceptive, it's likely that most of the time the behaviour which comes from them will be completely different from whatever reaction you would normally expect from them over specific topics. In other words, if someone is being deceptive, it would be normal to expect that they would say that they agreed with you on a certain topic, but if they suddenly begin contradicting themselves over the same topic then there's probably something going on.

The most common signs that someone is lying include stuttering, fidgeting, sweating and looking down at the ground. However, these are actually very specific signs because often times people are nervous about talking about certain topics and in order to lie well they will try to avoid mentioning those topics altogether.

Finally

We all have the potential to be dishonest and lie because we don't want anyone to know what we're doing or thinking, but if someone is consistently lying without any obvious signs of discomfort around you then it's likely that they are being deceptive. Spend some time observing these signs and you'll find out a lot about someone very quickly.