ProverbWisdom
English origin
English originA fault once denied is twice committed.
Meaning: Refusing to acknowledge wrongdoing compounds the original error by adding dishonesty.
Origin: Recorded in A Dictionary of English Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases, an undated collection published in London by Whittaker & Co. around 1880 and credited to Thomas Preston. Its earlier history hasn't been traced.
Equivalents in French, Spanish, and Japanese
French: Une faute niée est deux fois commise (literally: A fault denied is twice committed)
Spanish: Pecado confesado, medio perdonado (literally: A sin confessed is half forgiven)
Japanese: 過ちて改めざる、是を過ちと謂う (Ayamachite aratamezaru, kore o ayamachi to iu) (literally: To err and not correct it — that is what is called an error)
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