20 Quotes To Help You Identify Fake Friends From a Mile Away

As social animals, humans are prone to deceive and trick others to get what they want. Sadly, little lies encroach on all aspects of our lives, especially friendships, and relationships.

Fake friends are everywhere, and we often don’t even know who they are. We get surprised when someone backstabs and betrays us. It can hurt us to our core.

Their betrayal is what stands between us and happiness. The pain we feel cripples us and chains us down.

Because our so-called friends have hurt us, it’s like we’ve been fed poison with no antidote. It seeps in slowly and destroys us inside and out.

We’re left with no one to turn to and no one to get us back into shape. This proves how detrimental fake friends and two-faced people are in our lives.

So, being vigilant and knowing the red flags of having fake friends is essential. One way of equipping yourself with these skills is by reading quotes that dive deep into evidence of their deceit and trickery.

Start eliminating these two-faced people from your life with the help of the fake friends quotes below. The process of cutting them off will undeniably hurt, but the pain will all be worth it in the end once you rid your life of them!

Most Relatable Fake Friends Quotes for Those Who Know Two-faced People

1. “Fake friends are like shadows: always near you at your brightest moments, but nowhere to be seen at your darkest hour.” – Khalil Gibran

We often consider our friends to be our companions in life. They stick with us through this exciting but sometimes devastating journey we call life.

Sadly, some people are only with you for their gain. These people appear to be your friends on the outside—showering you with love, affection, and care when you can give them something they want.

When you fall or need their help, they turn their backs on you, and you’ll feel like you’re talking to a brick wall. Gone are the loyal people you call friends at your brightest moments. In your darkest hour, all they are are shadows that don’t even have the decency to hold your hand through it all.

Fake friends quotes like the one above show us that there’s a fine line between the real ones and the frauds. Be mindful of who you call your true friends because they might just be there to betray you in the end!

2. “Fake friends: those who only drill holes under your boat to get it leaking; those who discredit your ambitions and those who pretend they love you, but behind their backs they know they are in to destroy your legacies.” – Israelmore Ayivor

True friends are often our cheerleaders. Whenever we have an endeavor we want to pursue, they’ll be by our sides as quick as lightning, wishing to support us through the ups and downs we’ll inevitably face.

It’s a different ballgame for fake friends. If you don’t pay enough attention, you’ll think they are present to offer you some help.

However, be wary and know that some people don’t wish the best for you. You may be working hard for your dreams, but fake friends never want you to be ahead of them.

Fake friends may result in sabotaging you and your dreams so that they can prove that no one’s better than them. Friends or not, never let other peoples’ words and actions invalidate your feelings!

3. “Fake friends are like poison; they slowly kill you from the inside out.” – Anonymous

Our world is like a garden, and we are like flowers that live and thrive in the environment we’re planted in. There are many different kinds of plants that we live and interact with: trees, grass, other flowers, and more.

To bloom, we need sufficient water and sunlight. However, as plants, we must be careful; it’s not easy to make out nutrients from poison.

If we let the poison take root, we’ll wither on the vine. Fake friends threaten to infect us at every turn.

We must be diligent! We need to understand whether the people we surround ourselves with allow us to grow or if they’re just poison trying to kill us from the inside.

4. “Some friends are like pennies, two-faced and worthless.” – Anonymous

People often grow up thinking, “The more, the merrier.” We apply this saying to most, if not all, aspects of our lives—including friendships.

We’re encouraged to get out there and socialize. To have a “big network” is considered a mark of success. However, only some of those connections are our real companions.

Some are just there for the free ride, while some are there just out of jealousy and spite. We’ll all encounter at least one two-faced person in our lives.

As we age, we must get better at sorting the wheat from the chaff in our social circle. Never let a penny outshine the many other authentic and valuable treasures you have!

5. “You don’t lose friends because real friends can never be lost. You lose people masquerading as friends, and you’re better for it.” – Mandy Hale

As we get older, our circle gets smaller and smaller. That’s not a problem per se.

Even if you lose contact with your real friends, the moment you get back to chatting, it’ll be like no time has passed. On the contrary, fake friends will disappear from your life like bubbles!

This is natural. Having a smaller circle of friends helps you ensure that you’re living life with the most genuine and authentic people you know.

6. “Fire false friends as early as possible. Do it before they dig out the dream seeds you’ve planted. The earlier, the better; the quicker, the safer.” – Israelmore Ayivor

Fake friends are the bane of our existence. This is because they try to establish themselves as our go-to people when we need help and use that as a cover-up to destroy us from the inside.

We usually tell our friends everything—more than we do our own family. They usually know all about our dreams, aspirations, mistakes, and failures.

Sadly, if we share these things with fake friends, they use the information to backstab us rather than protect and help us. When fake friends get a hold of our weaknesses, they’re more than likely to use that as a weapon to hurt us.

So, before it comes to that, we must identify our genuine friends from inauthentic people who are making us rot from the inside. Fake people quotes will help you flag this kind of person down, so never let them take root in your heart so that you can save yourself from even more heartache!

7. “Having fake friends is like hugging cactus. The tighter you hug, the more pain you get.” – Riza Prasetyaningsih

Sometimes, it’s hard to believe that our friends would hurt us. No matter what they do, we try to hold onto them, thinking it was all just a mistake.

If you think the same way, you must take this as a wake-up call! The more you try to hold onto a relationship like this, the more you’ll get hurt.

Stop thinking these people will change and be better; they never do! Don’t ever let their spikes prick you any longer.

It’ll be hard at the beginning but rip the band aid right off. Let go and free yourself from the pain they cause you!

Fake Friends Quotes on Their Betrayal

8. “Fake friends are like a garden full of weeds; they choke out the real beauty and life.” – Anonymous

The garden we call life is full of beautiful and whimsical plants. We have all sorts of flowers that bloom, just like us, when we grow into the people we’re meant to be.

We also have many fruit-bearing trees that give us an idea of what it’ll feel like to succeed at our goals. There is the grass that dances along the breeze to comfort us, like our friends.

However, take note and remember that weeds sometimes appear as grass. They look so similar that you may mistake one for the other.

Weeds are often used as a metaphor for fake friends because they can be deceiving, and they hurt the other plants in the garden by sucking out the nutrients meant for them. So, never mistake weeds for grass; pluck them out and allow the true beauty of the garden surface!

9. “Be very careful of who you share your problem with; remember that not every friend that smiles at you is your best friend.” – Kemmy Nola

Our friends are people we laugh and cry with. They bring us comfort and provide security whenever we feel down.

When we’re happy, they’re so glad, too. They even celebrate our most significant and minor accomplishments with us!

However, be wary of people who are only there with you at your highest points and not when you have problems. These are two-faced friends who would often offer fake smiles and hugs.

They smile at you and cheer you on when they benefit from whatever you’re doing, but when you share a problem or a weakness, they start scheming how to backstab you to get ahead of you. These people will never be your friends; be careful!

10. “Don’t fear the enemies who attack you; fear the fake friends that hug you.” – Anonymous

When we were younger, we were taught to be wary of strangers. However, has anyone taught us that we must be careful of our friends, too?

More often than not, friends do more damage than strangers. They hurt us a lot more because they’ve betrayed us and our trust.

Betrayal can never happen unless there is trust between two people. We trust our friends and put all our faith in them, and this is all the more reason why we crumble whenever our so-called friends backstab us.

So, while staying away from strangers is advisable, we must always be wary of friends hiding behind masks. Fake friends are everywhere, so you must be vigilant with the people you let inside your life.

11. “A friend that stabs you in the back is worse than an enemy that slaps you in the face.” – Anonymous

There are no expectations between strangers and certainly none between enemies. We don’t trust these people, so we don’t expect them to take sides or support us.

However, it’s entirely different for friends. In this kind of relationship, we believe a certain amount of loyalty, love, and respect would stop the other from committing grave acts that’ll hurt us.

This is why fake friends are much more detrimental to our well-being than strangers or enemies. When the latter hurts you, it’s not that much of a surprise.

Yet imagine a so-called friend doing something intentionally to hurt your feelings. Isn’t that betrayal much worse?

12. “Some people are willing to betray years of friendship just to get a little bit of the spotlight.” – Lauren Conrad

Some people are parasites. They use a particular facade and then try to reap the benefits of your achievements.

These fake friends will jump at any opportunity to take your spotlight for themselves. They are willing to cross and betray you, even after everything you’ve been through.

What’s worse, apart from grabbing the spotlight from you, they sometimes slander or smear your reputation to get ahead. These two-faced and fake people are not worth keeping in your life, and you’ll be so much better off without them!

13. “Everybody isn’t your friend. Just because they hang around you and laugh with you doesn’t mean you are your friends. People pretend well. At the end of the day, real situations expose fake people, so pay attention.” – Anonymous

People live behind masks, pretending to be someone they’re not.

Living without trust is hard, but you must always be wary of who you consider your true friend. Just because they spend time with you and offer you a smile whenever you glance their way doesn’t mean they have pure intentions.

The only real test is to find people who offer you a shoulder to cry on or a hand to grab when you’re at your lowest points. Whenever you’re faced with the harshness of reality, that’s when your genuine friends step forward and when your fake friends take a step back.

If you only pay attention, you’ll know who is behind your back, come what may. Fake friends are abundant; never allow yourself to be fooled!

14. “In the age of social media, friends are like snowflakes. They descend in their thousands. They disappear in seconds.” – Mouloud Benzadi

Social media is both a blessing and a curse. On the one hand, it makes meeting new people and connecting with old friends easier.

However, more often than not, social media is a place where fake relationships and friends are abundant. They’re scattered everywhere, and while it’s not easy to identify them in person, it’s a hundred times harder to do it over the internet.

Fake friends can take up multiple faces online. Through this, we see how social media is where fake relationships fester and propagate.

Whenever you build friendships online, remember to be as authentic as possible; don’t do to others what you don’t want to be done to you. At the same time, be extra mindful of the people you meet on social media; remember, not everything is as it seems online!

Fake Friends Quotes To Help You Move On

15. “You don’t lose anything when you lose fake friends.” – Anonymous

It’s hard to accept any breakup. However, more than romantic relationships, perhaps it’s even harder to move on after ending a friendship.

Think of it this way: if you break up with your partner, you turn to your friend for advice or a pick-me-up. They understand everything about you: what makes you tick, what worked in your previous relationship and what didn’t, and more.

However, who will you turn to if you break up with a friend you’ve known all your life? No one understands you better than your friends, so it’s so heartbreaking to put an end to a friendship.

Even so, remember that fake friendships will do more harm than good. If you’re ending a friendship with a fake person, you’re not losing anything; if anything, you’re gaining space for a new, more genuine friend!

16. “You never lose friends. Real ones will always stay—no matter what, and the fakes, you don’t need anyways.” – Drishti Bablani

People always say that falling out with friends is natural. However, for us, this statement is only partially correct.

Yes, it’s normal to go through the process of growing and shrinking your circle. However, remember that those who leave aren’t necessarily your friends.

They can be fake friends hiding behind masks and disguises to make you think they genuinely care for you. Through the numerous changes in the seasons of life, those who remain close to you are the only friends you’ll ever need.

Don’t be distraught when a so-called friend leaves or cuts contact with you. They were never your friends, to begin with, and you don’t need them in your life to be happy or successful!

17. “Eliminate those fake friends who seem real when you have something and disappear when you have nothing.” – Rashida Rowe

The true test of friendship lies in unending support, no matter how challenging the current circumstances are. Those who leave you during these trying times are fake friends who are not worth your time, effort, and care!

The moment any of the people you’re with show signs of deceiving you, you must take a step toward eliminating them from your life. If not, you’ll suffer more losses down the road.

Remember that cutting off fake people in your life doesn’t mean you’re losing anything. Instead, you’re gaining peace of mind!

Short Fake Friends That You Can Use as Instagram Captions

18. “One fake friend can do more damage than five enemies.” – Anonymous

Betrayal hurts! It hurts so much because it can only come from people we love and trust.

It’s not a surprise to be killed by an enemy. However, even if you’re only lied to by a friend, it hurts much more than being killed off by a foe or adversary.

You trust your friends to keep you safe and to have your back. So, when they break your faith and trust and cheat you, you feel like you’ve been defeated a hundred times over.

In the most crucial moments of your life, ensure you only keep authentic and genuine people around you. Being deceived by the masks your fake friends hide under will inevitably cause you to fail!

19. “We never lose friends; fake ones are exposed.” – Carlos Wallace

We often say that we lost a friend. However, they were never ours to lose in the first place.

Fake friends, after all, have minds of their own. They are just putting on airs and trying to make you rely on them more and more.

However, when reality strikes and they are tested, fake friends—out of their volition—leave your side. They don’t want anything to do with the nitty gritty and don’t care whether you find it hard to rise above a challenge.

In this way, they expose their true selves and selfish intentions. They prove they are not true friends because they aren’t willing to help you when you are troubled.

When we realize who our fake friends are, we often feel hurt. However, remember that you just dodged a bullet; if you kept hanging around with fake people, you’d get even more hurt in the future!

20. “Fake friends often save you from being naive.” – Jagadeesh Kumar

Fake friends serve as a wake-up call that reminds us that life is not all unicorns and rainbows. Yes, life is beautiful and full of happiness, but these positive emotions can also be fleeting.

No matter how well-disguised something—or someone—is, their true intentions will expose the truth! Following this, once you’ve encountered a fake friend, you allow yourself to grow and be better at reading people.

Discovering who your fake friends are will undeniably hurt you. However, remember that with this pain comes strength and resilience.

Your fake friends saved you from being naive as they showed you the two-faced angle there is to everything in life. Open your eyes and pay close attention to what makes a genuine friend!

Did You Find All The Red Flags You Need To Look Out for When Identifying Fake Friends?

Relationships—especially friendships—shouldn’t be forced. These things come naturally to us as social beings.

Having a big circle of friends shouldn’t be your goal. Instead, you should aim to find people who will genuinely care and love you through thick and thin.

It’ll hurt to realize that some people you call friends aren’t really your friends; even so, trust the process. In time, you’ll see that keeping these two-faced people by your side will inevitably lead to your downfall.

Remember, you’re better off being alone than being stuck with selfish people who will betray you time and time again. With that, we hope the quotes above can wake you up to the reality of life.

Don’t get so hung up on friendships that don’t do you any good. Let go, move on, and prioritize yourself!

This article originally appeared on Wealth of Geeks.