Usotsuki wa dorobou no hajimari (嘘つきは泥棒の始まり - He that will Lie will Steal)

Usotsuki wa dorobou no hajimari

I think that many people have had a lie at least several times.

There is a Japanese proverb that is related to a lie -- it is "usotsuki wa dorobou no hajimari" (嘘つきは泥棒の始まり).

Usotsuki (嘘つき) means 'lying' or 'liar,' dorobou (泥棒) means 'thief' or 'stealing,' and hajimari (始まり) means 'beginning,' so the literal meaning of this proverb is "lying is the beginning of stealing."

That is to say, this proverb means that if you come to have no qualms about telling lies, you will do something bad like stealing.

Incidentally, when I was searching for this proverb, I found that several similar English expressions; these are "He that will lie will steal" and "Lying and stealing are next door neighbors."

嘘つきは泥棒の始まり

ほとんどの人は、嘘をついたことがあると思います。

日本には嘘にまつわることわざ、「嘘つきは泥棒の始まり」があります。

「嘘つき」は 'lying' や 'liar,' 「泥棒」は 'thief' や 'stealing' 「始まり」は 'beginning' を意味するので、このことわざの文字通りの意味は "lying is the beginning of stealing" となります。

平気で人に嘘をつく用になってしまうと、良心が亡くなり、盗みのような悪事も平気ではたらくようになってしまうということです。

調べてみたら、英語にも "He that will lie will steal" や "Lying and stealing are next door neighbors" といった似た表現がありました。