noun
Meaning 1
A social scenario in which all participants are aware of a truth, but pretend to believe in some alternative version of events to avoid conflict or embarrassment.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: idiomatic
Examples
- Susan is only able to deal with the fact that her husband has sex with the man down the street through a polite fiction. She knows what her husband is really doing when he says he is going "to buy cigarettes".
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided