Lie detector

noun, slang

noun, slang ·Uncommon ·College level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A device designed to detect or indicate when a person is lying by measuring and recording several physiological variables. informal

    "It is a lie detector; with its aid one can plumb the bottomless pits of a chap's subconscious mind, and fathom all the mysteries of his subliminal ego."

  2. 2
    a polygraph that records bodily changes sometimes associated with lying wordnet

Example

More examples

"It is a lie detector; with its aid one can plumb the bottomless pits of a chap's subconscious mind, and fathom all the mysteries of his subliminal ego."

Etymology

From lie + detector. First use appears c. 1909. See cite below.