tell you the truth
English
Pronunciation
Audio (AU) (file)
Phrase
tell you the truth
- (idiomatic, informal) Used to positively assert the frank honesty of an associated statement of set of statements; equivalent to "to you tell the truth".
- 1994, Lawrence Block, A Long Line of Dead Men:
- "What's the point? Your buddies can kick back and relax. I'm going into voluntary retirement." / "Oh?" / "Tell you the truth, I was getting a little tired of Jim Shorter. Tired of that little room on Ninety-fourth Street. You know what I might do? I might leave town."
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Usage notes
- Used bracketed by punctuation, especially commas, dashes, or parentheses.
- More intimate than tell the truth.
Synonyms
- (used to assert frank honesty of statement): frankly, honestly, tell the truth
Related terms
- tell the truth