I want a common idiom or expression that says "to give (something) veracity"
I was thinking "give it some salt", but that seems like its not a common expression.
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"Tell it like it is." "Call a spade a spade." Those feel inadequate somehow.– Kelly HessMar 23, 2011 at 0:56
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2"flesh it out"– OrblingMar 23, 2011 at 0:56
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This question struck me as weird, because veracity means truthfulness or accuracy. People don't say things like "give it veracity" or "give it accuracy". Technically that would mean, get rid of all the errors and lies. But we all assumed that you meant "make it more convincing". Is that right?– Jason OrendorffMar 23, 2011 at 15:23
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5 Answers
How about substantiate? Or some synonyms for substantiate from the Oxford American Writer's Thesaurus:
prove, show to be true, give substance to, support, uphold, bear out, justify, vindicate, validate, corroborate, verify, authenticate, confirm, endorse, give credence to.
answered Mar 23, 2011 at 2:10
You could try lend credence to:
Her torn clothing and scratches on her arms and shoulders lent credence to her claim of having been attacked.
How about back it up, as in We have the numbers to back that up or That claim sounds awfully flimsy; you need to back it up.
Prove it. (must put thirty characters)
Back it up, lend credence to, corroborate, support, grant verisimilitude.
That last one isn't exactly a common idiom. I just wanted to use the same word in two english.SE answers on the same day.
