E. Cobham Brewer 1810–1897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898.
Lie Circumstantial (The)
or The lie with circumstance. Sir, if you said so, it was a lie. As Touchstone says, this insult is voidable by this means—“If you said so, I said it was a lie,” but the word “if” makes the insult hypothetical. This is the lie direct in the second degree or once removed. (See COUNTERCHECK.)
