deceit

noun

de·​ceit di-ˈsēt 

1

: the act of causing someone to accept as true or valid what is false or invalid : the act or practice of deceiving : deception

achieving one's goals through a web of deceit

2

: an attempt or device to deceive : trick

Her excuse turned out to be a deceit.

3

: the quality of being dishonest or misleading : the quality of being deceitful : deceitfulness

… far from deceit or guile.

—John Milton

Synonyms of deceit

• deception
• deceptiveness
• fraud
• deceitfulness
• cheating
• cunning

Examples of deceit in a Sentence

a rise to power that was marked by treachery and deceit

she's completely free of deceit

Recent Examples on the Web

The film centers on Smita, a small-town housewife whose seemingly ordinary life unravels into a narrative exploring infidelity, deceit and moral ambiguity. —Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 7 Nov. 2025

Over the course of eight episodes, the show traces how mounting pressures, deceit and betrayal led to patriarch Alex Murdaugh murdering his wife, Maggie, and their son, Paul, in 2021. —Brianne Tracy, PEOPLE, 5 Nov. 2025

Since the movie's release in September, the relationship between the two has soured and in the weeks leading up to the bond hearing the filmmaker in court filings accused Goudreau of deceit, financial coercion and threatening conduct. —Arkansas Online, 2 Nov. 2025

This specific quiet theater of greed, luck, and deceit is likely over. —Alaa Elassar, CNN Money, 24 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English deceite, from Anglo-French, from Latin decepta, feminine of deceptus, past participle of decipere — see deceive

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing deceit

• self-deceit

Rhymes for deceit

• amit
• athlete
• backseat
• blackfeet
• broadsheet
• browbeat
• buckwheat
• compete
• compleat
• complete
• conceit
• concrete

Kids Definition

deceit

noun

de·​ceit di-ˈsēt 

1

: the act or practice of deceiving : deception

2

: an attempt or scheme to deceive : trick

3

: the quality of being deceitful

Legal Definition

deceit

noun

de·​ceit

: 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