pulling your leg!
Meaning
To playfully deceive someone or tell them something untrue as a joke.
Origin
Imagine the murky, gas-lit streets of 18th-century London, a place rife with pickpockets and street robbers. One common tactic for these ruffians was to work in pairs. As an unsuspecting victim strolled along, one thief would deliberately trip them—quite literally 'pulling their leg'—causing them to stumble or fall. In that moment of disorientation and recovery, their accomplice would swiftly relieve the victim of their valuables. The victim was not only robbed but also made to look foolish. Over time, this physical act of deception migrated from the criminal underworld into our everyday language, losing its sinister edge to become a lighthearted metaphor for a harmless, good-natured trick.
Examples
- I told Sarah I'd won the lottery, but I was just pulling her leg.
- Don't worry, he's not really angry; he's just pulling your leg about the broken vase.