IAGO: Faith, that he did – I know not what he did.
OTHELLO: What? what?
IAGO: Lie –
OTHELLO: With her?
IAGO: With her, on her; what you will.
– William Shakespeare
Othello, Act 4, Scene 1. From this exchange it’s clear that Iago has succeeded in completely hooking his fish, the gullible Othello. The master manipulator has been working up Othello into a frenzy of jealousy. Here he skilfully baits, deceives and provokes. He drops hints and suggestions of an illicit relationship between Cassio and Desdemona to fire up Othello’s imagination and send it into overdrive. The word "lie" is cleverly used to mean both telling a lie and Cassio lying with Desdemona and having sex with her.