Synonym Chooser

How does the verb equivocate differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of equivocate are fib, lie, palter, and prevaricate. While all these words mean "to tell an untruth," 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

When might fib be a better fit than equivocate?

While in some cases nearly identical to equivocate, fib applies to a telling of a trivial untruth.

fibbed about the price of the new suit

When is it sensible to use lie instead of equivocate?

While the synonyms lie and equivocate are close in meaning, lie is the blunt term, imputing dishonesty.

lied about where he had been

Where would palter be a reasonable alternative to equivocate?

The synonyms palter and equivocate are sometimes interchangeable, but palter implies making unreliable statements of fact or intention or insincere promises.

a swindler paltering with his investors

How do prevaricate and lie relate to one another, in the sense of equivocate?

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

during the hearings the witness did his best to prevaricate

Examples of equivocate in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Get Citation Request Reprint Permissions Play Download Article In February, as Russian tanks rolled across the Ukrainian border and Russian missiles rained down on Ukrainian cities, India equivocated. Shashi Tharoor, Foreign Affairs, 27 Apr. 2022 Maybe this equivocating is a marker of what the tech industry’s gargantuan lobbying campaigns have bought — an eye-watering $70 million on Congress alone as of 2022, outstripping stalwarts like oil and pharmaceuticals, without even counting surging state-level lobbying expenditures. New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 14 Mar. 2024 An India that equivocated on Ukraine cannot blame others for responding with the same indifference if China decided to teach it a lesson and redraw the Chinese-Indian border by force. Shashi Tharoor, Foreign Affairs, 27 Apr. 2022 In December, testifying before a House committee hearing on antisemitism on college campuses, three elite-university presidents equivocated when Elise Stefanik, a Republican congresswoman from New York, asked them whether calling for the genocide of Jews would violate the rules on their campuses. Charles Homans Gabra Zackman Anna Diamond Quinton Kamara, New York Times, 29 May 2024 See all Example Sentences for equivocate 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'equivocate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Thesaurus Entries Near equivocate

Cite this Entry

“Equivocate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/equivocate. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.

More from Merriam-Webster on equivocate

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