deceit

deceit
de•ceit
[[t]dɪˈsit[/t]] n.
1) the act or practice of deceiving
2) a stratagem intended to deceive
3) the quality of being deceitful; duplicity
•
Etymology: 1225–75; deceite < OF, n. use of fem. of deceit, ptp. of deceivre to deceive syn: deceit, guile, duplicity, fraud refer either to practices designed to mislead or to the qualities in a person that prompt such behavior. deceit is intentional concealment or misrepresentation of the truth: Consumers are often victims of deceit. guile is cunning deceit; it suggests subtle but treacherous tactics: He used guile to gain access to the documents. duplicity is doing the opposite of what one says or pretends to do; it suggests hypocrisy or pretense: the duplicity of a friend who does not keep a secret. fraud refers to deceit or trickery by which one may derive benefit at another's expense; it often suggests illegal or dishonest practices: an advertiser convicted of fraud.

From formal English to slang. 2014.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую
Synonyms:
, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,


Look at other dictionaries:

  • deceit — de·ceit n: deliberate and misleading concealment, false declaration, or artifice: deception theft by deceit; also: the tort of committing or carrying out deceit an action for deceit see also fraud, misrepresentation …   Law dictionary

  • deceit — 1 Deceit, duplicity, dissimulation, cunning, guile mean the quality, the habit, the act, or the practice of imposing upon the credulity of others by dishonesty, fraud, or trickery. Deceit usually implies the intent to mislead or delude; otherwise …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • Deceit — De*ceit , n. [OF. deceit, des[,c]ait, decept (cf. deceite, de[,c]oite), fr. L. deceptus deception, fr. decipere. See {Deceive}.] 1. An attempt or disposition to deceive or lead into error; any declaration, artifice, or practice, which misleads… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • deceit — de‧ceit [dɪˈsiːt] noun [countable, uncountable] behaviour that is intended to make someone believe something that is not true: • Victims of the firm s fraud and deceit are seeking redress in the courts. * * * deceit UK US /dɪˈsiːt/ noun [U] ►… …   Financial and business terms

  • Deceit — Album par This Heat Sortie 1981 Enregistrement 1981 Durée 40:45 Genre Post punk Rock expérimental Producteur …   Wikipédia en Français

  • deceit — [n1] practice of misleading ambidexterity, ambidextrousness, artifice, cheating, chicane, chicanery, cozening, craft, craftiness, cunning, deceitfulness, deception, defrauding, dirty dealing*, dirty pool*, dishonesty, dissemblance, dissimulation …   New thesaurus

  • deceit — c.1300, from O.Fr. deceite, fem. pp. of deceveir (see DECEIVE (Cf. deceive)) …   Etymology dictionary

  • deceit — ► NOUN 1) the action or practice of deceiving. 2) a deceitful act or statement …   English terms dictionary

  • deceit — [dē sēt′, disēt′] n. [ME < OFr deceite < pp. of deceveir: see DECEIVE] 1. the act of representing as true what is known to be false; a deceiving or lying 2. a dishonest action or trick; fraud or lie 3. the quality of being deceitful …   English World dictionary

  • deceit — /di seet /, n. 1. the act or practice of deceiving; concealment or distortion of the truth for the purpose of misleading; duplicity; fraud; cheating: Once she exposed their deceit, no one ever trusted them again. 2. an act or device intended to… …   Universalium

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”