untruth

untruth
un‧truth /ʌnˈtruːθ, ˈʌntruːθ/ noun [countable]formal a lie – used when you want to avoid saying the word ‘lie’
     

THESAURUS

   ▪ lie noun [countable] something you say or write that you know is untrue: Would you tell lies to protect a friend? | The allegation is a complete lie.
   ▪ white lie noun [countable] informal a lie that you tell to avoid upsetting someone: We all tell white lies sometimes.
   ▪ fib noun [countable] informal a lie, especially about something that is not very important – used especially by children: Have you been telling fibs?
   ▪ porky noun [countable usually plural] British English informal a lie – a very informal use: He’s been telling porkies again.
   ▪ falsehood noun [countable] formal a statement that is not true, especially one that is intended to give people the wrong idea about someone or something: He described the allegations as malicious falsehoods.
   ▪ untruth noun [countable] formal a lie – used especially when you want to avoid saying the word lie: Some workers go off and tell untruths about the organisations for which they are working.
   ▪ fabrication noun [uncountable and countable] formal a story or claim that someone has invented in order to deceive someone, or the act of doing this: The claim was described as a fabrication by the police prosecutor. | He dismissed the charges as pure fabrication.
   ▪ libel noun [uncountable] law the crime of writing lies that could make people have a bad opinion of someone, especially in a newspaper or magazine: She sued the newspaper for libel. | libel laws
   ▪ slander noun [uncountable and countable] law the crime of speaking lies that could make people have a bad opinion of someone, or an untrue statement which does this: He’s threatening to sue them for slander. | a slander on the good name of the company | Linking his name to terrorism was a slander.