Is there any real difference between an outright lie and a lie by omission?

You are asking about deliberate lies of omission rather than oversight?

A good question that has plagued philosophers since they began to philosophize.

If we are talking about the historically malicious person that you have to deal with, I would say that there is no difference. In either case, they do harm.

To me, it depends on the reason. If the omission is deliberately done to mislead or deceive, then they are the same.

I agree with @YARNLADY.

We’re talking about intent then?

It kind of depends on whether the lie by omission was intentional. If it was not, then it seems to be less of a lie than an oversight. If the non-teller deliberately left out information that he or she knew the recipient would want or need to know, then it is just as bad as a outright lie.

A lie is a lie, just hope you have a good explanation for evoking one, be it by means of untruth or silence.

IMO, there is no difference.

Omissions can occur accidentally for many reasons, while an outright lie requires actively concocting a false story. That’s worse, to me. A purposeful lie of omission can be just as bad, though.

Depends on which side is telling the story.

Like others have said, if the ommision was intentional rather than inadvertent, then both forms of lying amount to the same thing to me. However, there are times when it is justified to plead the fifth too. Depending on the type of question you’re being asked, and the person asking you it (like a troublemaker), lying is sometimes justifiable to me.

As usual with these types of question it comes down to context. I don’t think it’s always a necessarily bad thing to lie, deliberately and coldly. And “lying by omission” is not only sometimes encouraged, but often required in court cases, where a witness is enjoined from responding with “the whole truth”, but is required to “just answer the question, please.”

A lie is not the truth. Whether it is covert or overt, intentional or inadvertent, accidental or deliberate, an outright lie or a lie by omission; it is still not the truth. The manner of the lie doesn’t change the truth.

It depends on the lie.

If you answer a question like, “I love my new dress! Do you like ?” with “It’s really a beautiful color” because you don’t want to hurt someones feelings, that’s a lie of omission. While you can argue that it would be kinder to gently tell her you don’t like it, some times it’s better not to tell the truth.
I guess my rule would be, Lie as Little as Possible!

@gailcalled it isn’t about a specific person, I just had a couple of experiences with others recently that got me thinking about this. I am speaking about a purposeful lie by omission, not just someone being forgetful or inadvertently not sharing something.

@SuperMouse Given that it’s a purposeful omission, I’d say they’re about the same. Choosing not to speak/act is still a choice, yet one that oddly tends not to feel as wrong to people.

Yes, I’d say intent is everything. My mechanic under charged me today by $187, accidentally, and I caught the error when I got home.
Now had I not opted to inform him of the error, then I would be extremely guilty of lying by omission. Forgetting a detail or oversight is not the same as willfull omission.

That wouldn’t be telling a lie, @Coloma. That would be stealing.

@Coloma: The guy who did my brush-hogging forgot to send me a bill last summer; I suddenly realized it when I called him last week. I told him and he said that it was his fault for being careless. We had a nice little go-around but I persuaded him to bill me for two cuttings.

Lying or stealing or omitting to impart vital information?

@bkcunningham It would be both.
@gailcalled Hmmmm….none of the above, just an oversight by choice until you insisted he be compensated for the work done.

If the intent of the omission is to save your feelings by withholding information from you (like @Sunny2‘s dress example), I wouldn’t consider it as bad as an outright lie. If the intent is to harm you by withholding information, it would be just as bad as an outright lie, or maybe even worse, depending on the circumstances.

Deceit is deceit. But leaving things out because you don’t feel that they are pertinent is not.
I am reminded of a guy in Life, the Universe, and Everything who was given too much truth serum and then ordered to tell “the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth,” and improbably proceeded to give a rundown of the Universe.
Pertinence has always been something that I struggle with when I write.