deceive

verb

di-ˈsēv How to pronounce deceive (audio)
Definition of deceivenext
as in to fool
to cause to believe what is untrue he went to great lengths to deceive his family about the nature of his new job at the mall

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How does the verb deceive differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of deceive are beguile, delude, and mislead. While all these words mean "to lead astray or frustrate usually by underhandedness," deceive implies imposing a false idea or belief that causes ignorance, bewilderment, or helplessness.

tried to deceive me about the cost

In what contexts can beguile take the place of deceive?

Although the words beguile and deceive have much in common, beguile stresses the use of charm and persuasion in deceiving.

was beguiled by false promises

When is delude a more appropriate choice than deceive?

While the synonyms delude and deceive are close in meaning, delude implies deceiving so thoroughly as to obscure the truth.

we were deluded into thinking we were safe

When is it sensible to use mislead instead of deceive?

The words mislead and deceive can be used in similar contexts, but mislead implies a leading astray that may or may not be intentional.

I was misled by the confusing sign

Examples Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of deceive Meta has explicit rules against election misinformation on its platforms; these include a policy against content that attempts to deceive people about where and how to vote. —Kaitlyn Tiffany, The Atlantic, 4 Nov. 2024 Watch Ouija on Netflix 32 of 34 Malevolent Siblings Jackson (Ben Lloyd-Hughes) and Angela (Florence Pugh) deceive grieving clients using fake detection equipment and staged supernatural sightings. —Emy Lacroix, People.com, 4 Oct. 2024 Voters could be deceived into submitting funds to a joint pool of money to support a candidate. —Filip Timotija, The Hill, 30 Oct. 2024 The pair find themselves in trouble after a hazing incident goes wrong, and attempt to lie, deceive and seduce their way out of bother. —Abid Rahman, The Hollywood Reporter, 24 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for deceive 
Recent Examples of Synonyms for deceive
  1. fool
  2. trick
  3. mislead
Verb
  • Don't be fooled: the CFP's rankings are what determines whether a team will be in the playoffs.
    Ross Terrell, Axios, 5 Nov. 2024
  • The defendants’ last-minute attempt to rebrand their ER reboot as The Pitt is not fooling anyone.
    Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 5 Nov. 2024
Definition of fool
Verb
  • Other sculptures show how Raven tricks his way into the nobleman's home.
    Domenica Bongiovanni, The Indianapolis Star, 8 Nov. 2024
  • Add them all up and see if October tricked you into a doomscrolling coma or treated you to touching grass.
    Kate Lindsay, Vulture, 1 Nov. 2024
Definition of trick
Verb
  • To this effect, the CDT has also in the past year filed comments urging the Federal Election Commission to address the use of misleading deepfake images by political campaigns.
    Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 5 Nov. 2024
  • Gutierrez reasoned that jurors were confused by the testimony, including with respect to economic terms, and were misled by hypotheticals.
    Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 5 Nov. 2024
Definition of mislead

Thesaurus Entries Near deceive

deceivable

deceive

deceived

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“Deceive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/deceive. Accessed 30 Nov. 2024.

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More from Merriam-Webster on deceive

Nglish: Translation of deceive for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of deceive for Arabic Speakers

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