โกหก
lie
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- 1 lie、tell a lie
It means deliberately saying something untrue in order to make someone believe it.
lie、tell a lie
It describes deliberately making a false statement, usually to mislead someone.
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อย่าโกหก yàa koohòk Don't lie. อย่าโกหก details
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เขาโกหกฉัน khǎw koohòk chǎn He lied to me. เขาโกหกฉัน details
Learning notes
Explanation
โกหก is the basic everyday verb for deliberately saying something that is not true. It is neutral in register—not especially formal or slangy. The person being lied to can follow the verb directly, as in โกหกฉัน, “lie to me.” To state the content of the lie, the common pattern is โกหกว่า…, meaning “lie and say that….” โกหกตัวเอง, “lie to oneself,” can also describe refusing to acknowledge one's true feelings or reality. When a noun is needed, common expressions include คำโกหก for a lie or false statement and เรื่องโกหก for a lie or made-up story.
Usage
It is common in everyday situations involving honesty and trust: confronting someone about an untrue story, checking whether an explanation is truthful, or teaching a child not to lie. It is also frequently used in personal conversations between family members, friends, or partners.
Caution
โกหก accuses someone of knowingly saying something false, so it can sound harsh if the person was merely mistaken. For an innocent misunderstanding or slip of the tongue, expressions such as เข้าใจผิด (“misunderstand”) or พูดผิด (“say something incorrectly”) are more appropriate.
Differences from similar words
1 lie synonyms
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พูดเท็จ also means to make a false statement, but it is more formal and is common in legal, official, or news contexts. โกหก is the ordinary everyday word.
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หลอก means to deceive or trick someone and can involve actions or schemes as well as words. โกหก focuses more specifically on saying something untrue.