Is 「うそおっしゃい」 to be taken literally here?


In the video game Ripening Tingle's Balloon Trip of Love, the protagonist
Tingle meets a fortune teller who demonstrates her powers to him. She asks
him, "You come from a far away town, right?" If Tingle answers, "No", she
responds:

> うそ おっしゃい ! おばさん わかってるの。  
>  あなた まよっちゃったのよ ・・・

Now, from what I understand, `うそおっしゃい` means, "You're lying". However, since
she continues with "I understand, you're lost...", it doesn't sound like she
really disbelieves.

In this context, is `うそおっしゃい` to be taken literally, or is it a set phrase
expressing astonishment like, "You must be kidding" ?




First, 「おっしゃい」 is the imperative form of the verb 「[仰]{おっしゃ}る」, which is the
honorific form of 「[言]{い}う」.

「うそおっしゃい。」 means the exact **_opposite_** of what it means literally. Its
literal meaning is "Tell a lie!", but that is clearly not something a person
would say under normal circumstances, is it?.

Thus, 「うそおっしゃい。」 always means

> "Don't lie (to me)!"

A more common form is:

> 「うそつけ！」

which also literally means "Tell a lie!", actually means "Don't lie!" 100% of
the time.

The nuance of these phrases is "Lie all you want; I can see through you!",
"Lie if you want but it won't work!", etc. Thus, you are, in essence, saying
"C'mon, don't lie to me!" These expressions are loosely called
「[反語表現]{はんごひょうげん}」.

(Nothing to do with the question, really, but 「おばさん」 in this context means
"I". The speaker is using it like a first-person pronoun in talking to a
younger person. This is very common in Japanese.)




First, 「おっしゃい」 is the imperative form of the verb 「[仰]{おっしゃ}る」, which is the
honorific form of 「[言]{い}う」.

「うそおっしゃい。」 means the exact **_opposite_** of what it means literally. Its
literal meaning is "Tell a lie!", but that is clearly not something a person
would say under normal circumstances, is it?.

Thus, 「うそおっしゃい。」 always means

> "Don't lie (to me)!"

A more common form is:

> 「うそつけ！」

which also literally means "Tell a lie!", actually means "Don't lie!" 100% of
the time.

The nuance of these phrases is "Lie all you want; I can see through you!",
"Lie if you want but it won't work!", etc. Thus, you are, in essence, saying
"C'mon, don't lie to me!" These expressions are loosely called
「[反語表現]{はんごひょうげん}」.

(Nothing to do with the question, really, but 「おばさん」 in this context means
"I". The speaker is using it like a first-person pronoun in talking to a
younger person. This is very common in Japanese.)

