mental reservation

American  

noun

1. an unexpressed doubt or qualification about a situation, person, etc.

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mental reservation British  

noun

1. a tacit withholding of full assent or an unexpressed qualification made when one is taking an oath, making a statement, etc

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Etymology

Origin of mental reservation

First recorded in 1600–10

Example Sentences

Seven times, Graham has taken the oath of congressional office, ‘solemnly’ swearing to ‘support and defend the Constitution’ and to ‘bear true faith and allegiance’ to it, ‘without any mental reservation’,” Will charged.

From Salon

Seven times, Graham has taken the oath of congressional office, “solemnly” swearing to “support and defend the Constitution” and to “bear true faith and allegiance” to it, “without any mental reservation.”

From Washington Post

Do constant pressures to resign, to chasten the president, to speak up in criticism constitute mental reservations?

From Washington Post

They promise to take these obligations “freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; so help me God.”

From Seattle Times

More subtly, you could employ “mental reservation,” declaring “ ‘I didn’t see Father Gerard . . .’ while finishing the sentence in your head with the words ‘hide himself in a well-concealed priest’s hole.’

From Washington Post