Meaning & use
eyes deceive you
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Meaning
phraseidiomfigurative
Used to say that what you see is not real or is not what it seems.
Grammar: Fixed expression: 'your eyes deceive you' or 'my eyes deceive me'; often in the phrase 'if my eyes don't deceive me'.
Patterns
- your eyes deceive you
- my eyes deceive me
- if my eyes don't deceive me
Is that really you? My eyes must be deceiving me!
The mirror made the room look huge, but your eyes deceive you.
If my eyes don't deceive me, that is the same car we saw yesterday.
Common combinations
- if my eyes don't deceive me
- If my eyes don't deceive me, there is a rainbow over the hill.
- your eyes deceive you
- You think the dress is blue, but your eyes deceive you.
- my eyes must be deceiving me
- My eyes must be deceiving me — that looks like a famous actor.
Synonyms and how they differ
- it's an optical illusion
- A more technical way to say that what you see is not real; the idiom is more personal and conversational.
- looks can be deceiving
- A related saying meaning that appearances are not always true; it is more general than 'your eyes deceive you'.
Word family
Commonly confused: eyes deceive you or deceive?
eyes deceive you vs deceive
The verb 'deceive' is about making someone believe a lie; the idiom 'your eyes deceive you' means your sight is wrong, not that someone lied to you.
Practice
Is that a real diamond? ______.
Choose one answer.
The fixed expression is 'my eyes deceive me', using the object pronoun 'me'. 'My eyes are deceiving me' is sometimes heard but is less idiomatic in this exclamation.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “eyes deceive you”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.