how not to do

handtalk"I learned how not to tell a lie."

It is a very tricky sentence.
It says, "I learned how to lie very well."
I learned that if you tell an obvious lie, then others will know it is a lie, and not believe what you say.
Do not tell a lie this way. You have to tell a lie so that people believe what you say is true.

Thanks AlpheccaStars.

Very interesting!
So, it is basically the first interpretation "I learned a way to prevent telling a lie." Well, to turn a lie into a technically-not-a-lie.

But, is it possible, in a certain context, for the sentence to mean the latter, "I learned why one should not tell a lie." ?

Thanks.

handtalkSo, it is basically the first interpretation "I learned a way to prevent telling a lie."

No, it's that you learned how to tell a lie that would be believed, and learned what to avoid when telling a lie so you wouldn't reveal to the listener that you were lying.

Thanks for the reply Blue Jay.

So, the "how not to..." in the sentence "I learned how not to tell a lie.", means "a way..." regardless of the context.

Then, how about the "how not to tell a lie" in the sentence below? Does this mean something differnt?
Thanks.

"It was a great lesson in how not to tell a lie."

handtalkI learned how not to tell a lie.

I learned the wrong way (an ineffective way) to tell a lie.

It seems the speaker told a lie, and everyone knew it was a lie. He was not as good at telling lies as he thought.

CJ

Thanks CalifJim.

So, it is the same "how not to tell a lie", then...
I'm really confused...

So, it seems "how not to..." in the sentence "It was a great lesson in how not to tell a lie." means "a way of avoiding...".
How about the one in the sentence "It was a great lesson in how not to raise a child." ?
What exactly does "how not to..." in this sentence mean? I thin

handtalkHow about the one in the sentence "It was a great lesson in how not to raise a child." ?

Here are two examples:

A 3-year-old girl was in a store with her mother. The mother was buying food for the family. The girl saw some pretty toys on a display next to the cashier. She wanted a new toy, but the mother didn't want to buy it. So the girl star

Hi,
Thanks for the great examples, AlpheccaStars.
they are easy to understand and entertaining, too.
I now see the difference.

Thanks, again!