forked tongue
The characteristic of deceptiveness; duplicity; untruthfulness.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“Do not trust him, he speaks with a forked tongue.”
“The politician promised lower taxes to everyone, but his opponents claimed he was speaking with a forked tongue.”
“Despite his charming demeanor and eloquent speeches, the diplomat was known to speak with a forked tongue, often saying one thing to his allies and another to his enemies.”
- 01
bite one's tongue
To resist the urge to speak out, especially in order to avoid saying something inappropriate or likely to cause a dispute.
- 02
cat got someone's tongue
Why is someone not saying anything?
- 03
civil tongue
A polite manner of speaking.
- 04
dukes
[Cockney slang]fork, i.e. hand, now chiefly when balled into a fist
- 05
find one's tongue
To speak after being unable to do so or after remaining silent; to find something to say.
- 06
fork off
to diverge into two or more separate paths.
- 07
fork over
To pay, give up or hand over a large amount of money.
- 08
hold one's tongue
To refrain from talking about something.
Last updated August 10, 2026