- English translation
Keeping quiet when the truth needs speaking is as bad as speaking up for a lie.
- Literal wording
The one who keeps silent about the truth is like the one who speaks in falsehood.
- Meaning and lesson
The saying holds that staying silent when the truth or a just cause needs a voice is morally equal to openly arguing for falsehood. Silence here is not neutral, because it leaves the field to the wrong side and so effectively helps it win.
Because الحق can mean 'truth' or 'right', the saying can condemn withholding honest testimony, or it can condemn failing to stand up for someone who has been wronged. In both readings, the person who keeps quiet shares the guilt of the person who speaks falsely.
- When it is used
A colloquial rebuke for someone who stays quiet while a wrong is done or a truth is denied, especially when that person knows better or could speak up. It also reminds oneself that silence in such moments is not neutral.
- Register
- colloquial
Cite or copy proverb
How this record reached us: Editorially sourced.
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