face the facts
Confront the truth
To face the facts is to accept reality rather than avoid or deny it, especially when the truth is uncomfortable: You need to face the facts—the relationship is over.
The phrase often appears as an imperative, urging someone to stop wishful thinking.
Let's face facts softens the tone slightly, inviting shared acknowledgment of an unpleasant situation.
- hard truthUnpleasant accurate statement
- acknowledgeConfirm receipt or truth
- acceptConsent to receive
- understandGrasp the meaning
- confrontFace squarely, address directly
moment of truth · realism · bite the bullet · truth · come clean · admit · get real · come to terms · wake-up call · open your eyes · see the light · honesty · brutal honesty · look in the mirror · comprehend · recognition · grasp · awareness
- sarcasmyeah right, oh please, as if, oh really, how original
face the factsbury one's head in the sand
Avoid acknowledging uncomfortable truths
wishful thinking · turn a blind eye · self-deception · stick one's head in the sand · look the other way
face, faces, faced, facing, facial, facially, surface, deface, defacement