prevaricate

1 of 2

verb

pre·​var·​i·​cate pri-ˈver-ə-ˌkāt 

-ˈva-rə-

prevaricated; prevaricating

intransitive verb

: to deviate from the truth : equivocate

prevarication

pri-ˌver-ə-ˈkā-shən 

-ˌva-rə-

noun

prevaricator

pri-ˈver-ə-ˌkā-tər 

-ˈva-rə-

noun

prevarication

2 of 2

noun

pre·​var·​i·​ca·​tion

plural -s

1

: the act or an instance of prevaricating

especially : a perversion of or a deviation from the truth

2

: a statement that deviates from or perverts the truth

often : lie

the august tribunal of the skies, where no prevarications shall avail

—William Cowper

Did you know?

Prevaricate and its synonyms lie and equivocate all refer to playing fast and loose with the truth. Lie is the bluntest of the three. When you accuse someone of lying, you are saying that person was intentionally dishonest, no bones about it. Prevaricate is less accusatory and softens the bluntness of lie, usually implying that someone is evading the truth rather than purposely making false statements. Equivocate is similar to prevaricate, but it generally implies that someone is deliberately using words that have more than one meaning as a way to conceal the truth.

Synonyms of prevaricate

Verb

• lie

Choose the Right Synonym for prevaricate

lie, prevaricate, equivocate, palter, fib mean to tell an untruth.

lie is the blunt term, imputing dishonesty.

lied about where he had been

prevaricate softens the bluntness of lie by implying quibbling or confusing the issue.

during the hearings the witness did his best to prevaricate

equivocate implies using words having more than one sense so as to seem to say one thing but intend another.

equivocated endlessly in an attempt to mislead her inquisitors

palter implies making unreliable statements of fact or intention or insincere promises.

a swindler paltering with his investors

fib applies to a telling of a trivial untruth.

fibbed about the price of the new suit

Examples of prevaricate in a Sentence

Verb

Government officials prevaricated about the real costs of the project.

during the hearings the witness was willing to prevaricate in order to protect his friend

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

That’s a phrase used for President Lyndon Johnson prevaricating on the Vietnam War. —John Seiler, Oc Register, 9 June 2026

Instead, the White House spent weeks prevaricating on an executive order that rests on the voluntary cooperation of the AI industry. —Matteo Wong, The Atlantic, 3 June 2026

There was a sense that the people in charge of the operation were incompetent or, worse, deliberately prevaricating. —Jessica Camille Aguirre, New Yorker, 2 May 2026

Starmer prevaricated, pointing to an earlier statement of solidarity with Denmark. —Christian Edwards, CNN Money, 9 Jan. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Latin praevaricatus, past participle of praevaricari to act in collusion, literally, to straddle, from prae- + varicare to straddle, from varus bowlegged

Noun

Middle English prevaricacioun deviation from duty, from Late Latin praevarication-, praevaricatio, from Latin, collusion, from praevaricatus (past participle of praevaricari) + -ion-, -io -ion

First Known Use

Verb

circa 1625, in the meaning defined above

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Kids Definition

prevaricate

verb

pre·​var·​i·​cate pri-ˈvar-ə-ˌkāt 

prevaricated; prevaricating

: lie entry 3 sense 1

prevarication

-ˌvar-ə-ˈkā-shən 

noun

prevaricator

-ˈvar-ə-ˌkāt-ər 

noun