too good to be true

Idioms  

1. So excellent that it defies belief, as in She loves all her in-laws? That's too good to be true. This term expresses the skeptical view that something so seemingly fine must have something wrong with it. The term was part of the title of Thomas Lupton's Sivquila; Too Good to be True (1580).

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Example Sentences

It wasn’t too good to be true, but it was too good to remain true.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 5, 2026

“That report is almost too good to be true for somebody of his age,” Shutze said.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 31, 2026

The results often look too good to be true.

From BBC • May 7, 2026

It looks almost too good to be true.

From Barron's • May 5, 2026

He did have many of the qualities of the Star Wars hero, a kind of wholesome purity that seemed too good to be true but was so natural as to make him appear almost delicate.

From "Friday Night Lights: A Town, A Team, And A Dream" by H.G. Bissinger