Meaning & use
your eyes deceive you
Last updated
Meaning
phrasefixed phrase
Used to say that what you seem to see is not real, or that you have misjudged a situation.
Grammar: A complete clause; it usually stands alone or follows 'if' in a warning or joke.
Patterns
- if your eyes deceive you
- your eyes must be deceiving you
The desert looked like it was full of water, but your eyes deceive you in that heat.
If your eyes deceive you, look again: that is a real elephant in the garden.
She thought the price tag said ten dollars, but her eyes were deceiving her.
Common combinations
- if your eyes deceive you
- If your eyes deceive you, check the label before you buy.
- your eyes must be deceiving you
- You think that is a bird? Your eyes must be deceiving you.
- look twice in case your eyes deceive you
- Look twice in case your eyes deceive you.
Synonyms and how they differ
- you must be seeing things
- More informal and often said directly to someone who reports something impossible.
- it's an optical illusion
- Names the cause rather than describing the experience of being misled.
Word family
Commonly confused: your eyes deceive you or betray?
your eyes deceive you vs betray
Betray means to be disloyal to a person or country; deceive is about making someone believe something untrue.
Practice
Which sentence uses the phrase correctly?
Choose one answer.
The phrase is a complete clause and works best with 'if' or 'when' to describe a situation that misleads you. The other options are ungrammatical or awkward.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “your eyes deceive you”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.