How Can I Tell If Someone is Lying?

Friends, family, coworkers, your neighbors, spouses, and even the guy in the produce section of the supermarket who swears that the limp lettuce on display “just came in this morning”. In times like these when deceit is so rampant among us, its certainly good to be able to tell if someone is lying to you. Check out the tips below on how to hone your lie detection skills so that next time you suspect it, you’ll be able to tell easily if someone is lying to you.

Eleven Ways to Spot A Liar

Lie Detection by Body Language

Stiffness. Liars are often tense and will make as few limb movements as possible while lying or discussing a lie.

Twitching fingers. Though their limbs might be tense, liars often can’t resist small nervous movements of their fingers. They will also often play idly with small objects nearby such as pens, keys, and their jewelry.

Face Touching. A lot of nervous or idle contact with their face, ears, or nose is another give away among liars. Many people report persistent nose itching when deceiving someone.

Odd gestures. If someone’s body motions do not fit with what is being discussed or if they make untimely gestures during their speech this could be a sign that they may are lying.

Fake Emotions. When an emotion is sincere, the hundreds of tiny muscles in a person’s face work together to convey that emotion. Fake emotions, like a fake smile, tend to extend only to the mouth region of the face, never actually reaching the eyes, cheeks, and other areas of the face. So if someone’s smile or frown is nothing more than a mere pulling up or down their lips respectively, this can accurately detect if that someone is lying to you.

Face Twitches. For the same reason of facial muscles mentioned above, most people cannot hide the brief flicker of their true emotions that flits across their face when they feel something. Though these flickers usually last as little as a quarter second, close scrutiny of someone’s face can reveal if they are lying.

Lie Detection by Speech