Verity — A Vocabulary Story
Verity or Fib
On Fridays, Kesi's family played Verity or Fib at the dinner table, and nobody was allowed to leave until the plates were clear and the fibs were found.
Verity means truth, or the quality of being true. It can also mean a true belief or principle that is very important.
"I will start," said Kesi's dad, Juma. "When I was a boy, I walked to school with a goat."
"Verity," said Kesi at once. "You have told us about that goat a hundred times."
"Fib," said her brother Baraka. "It was a sheep."
Juma shook his head. "It was a goat, it was true, and the goat was very polite."
Kesi's mum went next. "I once sang on the radio."
The whole table went quiet. Kesi looked at her mum, who was humming over the rice and not looking at anyone.
"True," said Kesi slowly. "I think."
"Verity," said her mum. "One song. The station was very small and the microphone smelt of dust."
Then it was Kesi's turn. She had been saving hers all week.
"I can name every planet backwards," she said.
"Fib," said Baraka.
"Verity," said Kesi, and she did it, from Neptune to Mercury, without stopping for breath.
Baraka looked at his plate.
"Some verities," said Juma, "are more annoying than others."
Kesi helped herself to more rice. She was already thinking about next Friday, and what she could practise between now and then that nobody would guess.
Word Definition
verity
meaning
the quality of being true; truth; a true principle or belief, especially one of lasting importance
synonyms
truth · truthfulness · veracity · fact
antonyms
falsehood · untruth
example sentence
The old proverb holds a simple verity: hard work pays off.