fib
1 of 3noun
ˈfib 
: a trivial or childish lie
fib
2 of 3verb (1)
fibbed; fibbing
intransitive verb
: to tell a fib
fibber noun
fib
3 of 3verb (2)
fibbed; fibbing
British
: pummel, beat
Synonyms
Noun
- fable
- fabrication
- fairy tale
- falsehood
- falsity
- lie
- mendacity
- prevarication
- story
- tale
- taradiddle
- tarradiddle
- untruth
- whopper
Verb (1)
- fabricate
- lie
- prevaricate
Verb (2)
- bash
- baste
- bat
- batter
- beat
- belabor
- belt
- birch
- bludgeon
- buffet
- bung up
- club
- curry
- do
- drub
- flog
- hammer
- hide
- lace
- lambaste
- lambast
- lash
- lather
- lick
- maul
- mess (up)
- paddle
- pelt
- pommel
- pound
- pummel
- punch out
- rough (up)
- slate
- slog
- switch
- tan
- thrash
- thresh
- thump
- tromp
- wallop
- whale
- whip
- whop
- whap
- whup
- work over
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
Noun I have to admit that I told a fib when I said I enjoyed the movie. Is she telling fibs again?
Recent Examples on the Web
Mario Aguilar, STAT, 1 Sep. 2022 As long as the risk of getting caught dispensing misinformation does not outweigh the reward of using a fib to get a huge threat out of the way and bind an important player closer to you and your cause, then let 'er rip! Dalton Ross, EW.com, 5 May 2022 Fielder does so with photorealistic accuracy, building a replica of a Brooklyn bar in which one trivia-team member is to admit an embarrassing fib to another. Daniel D'addario, Variety, 11 July 2022 The feature also allows users to see how other health and lifestyle data, like sleep, weight, and exercise might be impacting their A-fib. Casey Ross, STAT, 8 June 2022 The fib in question was delivered during Vanity Fair's lie detector test series (see the video below). Lauren Huff, EW.com, 13 May 2022 Just a fib to another FBI official regarding Page’s status as a CIA informant, which the Bureau failed to disclose to the judge. Andrew C. Mccarthy, National Review, 15 Feb. 2022 Rylance, Flynn and Beale are especially gifted at raising an eyebrow just a millimeter high enough to suggest a fib is in progress or adding a microsecond of hesitancy here or there to enhance the effect. Leslie Felperin, The Hollywood Reporter, 14 Feb. 2022 In the original study, researchers collected ECG patch data from 450 people who were notified, 34% of whom were found to have A-fib. Stat Staff, STAT, 30 Sep. 2021 Dalton Ross, EW.com, 9 Mar. 2022 Who isn’t going to fib a little and overstate their exercise habits? Amby Burfoot, Outside Online, 15 Jan. 2021 Surprisingly, 82% of charity and volunteer workers have lied to try and land a job, while 75% in the leisure, sport, and tourism fields fib on their CVs. William Thornton | Wthornton@al.com, al, 12 Oct. 2021 When deployed more widely to sniff out passengers, the dogs may also deter would-be travelers inclined to fib about their coronavirus exposure or infection status. Washington Post, 9 Sep. 2021 But Shachar does sympathize with those tempted to fib about a health problem or use an old address to qualify for a vaccine — especially when different areas have different rules. Washington Post, 22 Mar. 2021 Testing is scarcer in poor countries; and autocratic governments (more common in the developing world) are likelier than democracies to fib about figures. The Economist, 5 June 2020 As far as the food, Pacifico fibbed, advertising crab on the menu/menu board but serving imitation crab. David J. Neal, miamiherald, 7 June 2018 Survey results will be skewed if the types who do not answer are different from those who do, or if certain types of people are more loth to answer some questions, or more likely to fib. The Economist, 24 May 2018 See More
Noun
One key question will be how reliably and accurately the new algorithm being used for the study can catch instances of A-fib. Mario Aguilar, STAT, 1 Sep. 2022 As long as the risk of getting caught dispensing misinformation does not outweigh the reward of using a fib to get a huge threat out of the way and bind an important player closer to you and your cause, then let 'er rip! Dalton Ross, EW.com, 5 May 2022 Fielder does so with photorealistic accuracy, building a replica of a Brooklyn bar in which one trivia-team member is to admit an embarrassing fib to another. Daniel D'addario, Variety, 11 July 2022 The feature also allows users to see how other health and lifestyle data, like sleep, weight, and exercise might be impacting their A-fib. Casey Ross, STAT, 8 June 2022 The fib in question was delivered during Vanity Fair's lie detector test series (see the video below). Lauren Huff, EW.com, 13 May 2022 Just a fib to another FBI official regarding Page’s status as a CIA informant, which the Bureau failed to disclose to the judge. Andrew C. Mccarthy, National Review, 15 Feb. 2022 Rylance, Flynn and Beale are especially gifted at raising an eyebrow just a millimeter high enough to suggest a fib is in progress or adding a microsecond of hesitancy here or there to enhance the effect. Leslie Felperin, The Hollywood Reporter, 14 Feb. 2022 In the original study, researchers collected ECG patch data from 450 people who were notified, 34% of whom were found to have A-fib. Stat Staff, STAT, 30 Sep. 2021 Verb
Sure, a few may fib more than others, but at some point everyone deceives someone. Dalton Ross, EW.com, 9 Mar. 2022 Who isn’t going to fib a little and overstate their exercise habits? Amby Burfoot, Outside Online, 15 Jan. 2021 Surprisingly, 82% of charity and volunteer workers have lied to try and land a job, while 75% in the leisure, sport, and tourism fields fib on their CVs. William Thornton | Wthornton@al.com, al, 12 Oct. 2021 When deployed more widely to sniff out passengers, the dogs may also deter would-be travelers inclined to fib about their coronavirus exposure or infection status. Washington Post, 9 Sep. 2021 But Shachar does sympathize with those tempted to fib about a health problem or use an old address to qualify for a vaccine — especially when different areas have different rules. Washington Post, 22 Mar. 2021 Testing is scarcer in poor countries; and autocratic governments (more common in the developing world) are likelier than democracies to fib about figures. The Economist, 5 June 2020 As far as the food, Pacifico fibbed, advertising crab on the menu/menu board but serving imitation crab. David J. Neal, miamiherald, 7 June 2018 Survey results will be skewed if the types who do not answer are different from those who do, or if certain types of people are more loth to answer some questions, or more likely to fib. The Economist, 24 May 2018 See More Word History
Etymology
Noun
perhaps by shortening & alteration from fable
Verb (2)
origin unknown
First Known Use
Noun
1611, in the meaning defined above
Verb (1)
1675, in the meaning defined above
Verb (2)
1610, in the meaning defined above
Phrases Containing fib
Kids Definition
fib 1 of 2
noun
ˈfib
: a lie about something unimportant
fib
2 of 2verb
fibbed; fibbing
: to tell a lie about something unimportant
Medical Definition
fib
abbreviation
fibrillation
fib 1 of 3
noun
as in lie
a statement known by its maker to be untrue and made in order to deceive the claim that everyday living would be impossible without at least a few innocent fibs Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- lie
- tale
- story
- prevarication
- whopper
- falsehood
- untruth
- fabrication
- mendacity
- fable
- fairy tale
- falsity
- taradiddle
- exaggeration
- tarradiddle
- distortion
- fiction
- bluff
- ambiguity
- half-truth
- perjury
- libel
- defamation
- deceit
- slander
- fraudulence
- misrepresentation
- misstatement
- obliquity
- nonsense
- equivocation
- myth
- duplicity
- jive
- dishonesty
- misconception
- canard
- humbug
- fallacy
- misinformation
- misreport
- deceitfulness
- falsification
- pose
- pretence
- pretense
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- truth
- fact
- truthfulness
- truism
- honesty
- confirmation
- veracity
- validation
- verification
- verity
- authentication
- substantiation
fib
2 of 3verb (1)
as in to lie
to make a statement one knows to be untrue fibbed and said that he had remembered to water her plants while she was away Synonyms & Similar Words
- lie
- prevaricate
- deceive
- fabricate
- perjure
- trick
- palter
- fool
- hoax
- kid
- delude
- equivocate
- dupe
- misreport
- libel
- gull
- slander
- forswear
- misstate
- fudge
- hoodwink
- cozen
- misrepresent
- snow
- mislead
- distort
- foreswear
- falsify
- dissimulate
- misinform
- dissemble
- beguile
- defame
- traduce
- garble
- misguide
- take in
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- testify
- swear
- assert
- confirm
- verify
- validate
- substantiate
- authenticate
fib
3 of 3verb (2)
as in to lick
to strike repeatedly the two drunken pub crawlers proceeded to fib each other senseless Synonyms & Similar Words
- lick
- hide
- lash
- pound
- beat
- attack
- slap
- do
- knock
- thump
- slam
- whip
- hit
- punch
- spank
- pelt
- bat
- maul
- batter
- tan
- assault
- bash
- whale
- punch out
- smash
- wound
- paddle
- smack
- bung up
- chop
- switch
- birch
- whack
- wallop
- belabor
- bludgeon
- thresh
- buffet
- lather
- pummel
- club
- curry
- lace
- hammer
- whop
- baste
- raid
- flog
- box
- slog
- slate
- cuff
- swipe
- drub
- rush
- tromp
- whup
- work over
- sock
- rough (up)
- thrash
- belt
- swat
- whap
- bust
- lam
- crack
- storm
- lambaste
- wham
- blackjack
- pommel
- mess (up)
- beat up on
- lambast
- lacerate
- paste
- mangle
- clobber
- rawhide
- lay on
- cane
- gore
- flagellate
- strap
- assail
- cudgel
- cowhide
- maim
- beset
- clout
- mutilate
- pistol-whip
- thwack
- leather
- fustigate
- whomp
- pounce (on or upon)
- jump (on)
- scourge
- descend (on or upon)
- horsewhip
Synonym Chooser
Some common synonyms of fib are equivocate, lie, palter, and prevaricate. While all these words mean "to tell an untruth," fib applies to a telling of a trivial untruth.
fibbed about the price of the new suit
The synonyms equivocate and fib are sometimes interchangeable, but equivocate implies using words having more than one sense so as to seem to say one thing but intend another.
equivocated endlessly in an attempt to mislead her inquisitors
While the synonyms lie and fib are close in meaning, lie is the blunt term, imputing dishonesty.
lied about where he had been
The words palter and fib are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, palter implies making unreliable statements of fact or intention or insincere promises.
a swindler paltering with his investors
Prevaricate softens the bluntness of lie by implying quibbling or confusing the issue.
during the hearings the witness did his best to prevaricate