From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishto tell (you) the truthto tell (you) the truthHONESTused to emphasize that you are being very honest I don’t really want to go out, to tell the truth. → tell
Examples from the Corpus
to tell (you) the truth• I'm not sure how he did it, to tell you the truth.• You want us to tell the truth?• A bit like Mrs Riley, to tell the truth.• Did people not trust me to tell the truth?• He bathed a lot and never smelled even alive, to tell the truth.• I don't know a great deal about flowers, to tell the truth.• They must learn how to tell the truth and listen.• But to tell the truth, for a long time I've been slightly lost as a dealer.• To tell you the truth, I can't stand Sandy's cooking.• We had a pretty good time I suppose, but to tell the truth I didn't feel like a party much.to tell (you) the truthto tell (you) the truthspokenTRUE used when giving your personal opinion or admitting something To tell the truth, I was frightened to death. → truthExamples from the Corpus
to tell (you) the truth• He bathed a lot and never smelled even alive, to tell the truth.• We had a pretty good time I suppose, but to tell the truth I didn't feel like a party much.• But to tell the truth, for a long time I've been slightly lost as a dealer.• I don't know a great deal about flowers, to tell the truth.• They must learn how to tell the truth and listen.• Did people not trust me to tell the truth?• A bit like Mrs Riley, to tell the truth.• You want us to tell the truth? 