The idiom "draw a long bow" means to exaggerate or stretch the truth beyond what is reasonable or believable. It is often used to describe someone who is telling a story that seems too far-fetched or unlikely to be true.
The origin of this idiom comes from the medieval practice of archery, where a longbow was a type of bow that required a lot of strength to pull back and shoot. It was said that only the strongest and most skilled archers could "draw a long bow" and shoot it accurately. Over time, the phrase came to be used metaphorically to describe someone who was stretching the truth beyond what was reasonable.
For example, if someone tells a story about catching a fish that was as big as a whale, you might say that they are "drawing a long bow" because it seems unlikely that a fish could be that big. Similarly, if someone claims to have climbed Mount Everest without any training or equipment, you might say that they are "drawing a long bow" because it seems impossible.
Overall, "drawing a long bow" is a way of describing someone who is exaggerating or stretching the truth in a way that is not believable.
• It's important to be honest in your job interview and not try to draw a long bow about your qualifications.
• The salesman was trying to draw a long bow by promising the product would make you lose weight overnight.
• The politician tried to draw a long bow about his achievements, but the audience saw through his lies.
• The writer's descriptions were so vivid and detailed that it was hard to tell if he was drawing a long bow or not.
• I am not very good at drawing a long bow.
• The historian was accused of drawing a long bow by claiming that a certain event never happened.