deluding 1 of 2

adjective

as in misleading
tending or having power to deceive the deluding appearance of the surface of the river, which is actually quite fast-moving

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

deluding

2 of 2

verb

present participle of delude
as in fooling
to cause to believe what is untrue we deluded ourselves into thinking that the ice cream wouldn't affect our diet

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example 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 deluding
Verb
People are deluding themselves with the one-size-fits-all line of thinking. — Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 13 July 2026 This might not be a circumstance where the AI would shine in aiding the mental health of the user (or, on the other side of the coin, deluding them and entrapping them). — Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 31 May 2026 Or deluding themselves along with him. — Grant Brisbee, New York Times, 1 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for deluding
  1. misleading
  2. fooling
  3. deceptive
  4. tricking
  5. false
  6. deceiving
Adjective
  • But in an interview with NPR last year, Patterson said the projection can create a misleading impression when used as a general-purpose world map.
    — Jewel Bright, NPR, 4 Sep. 2026
  • The White House’s misleading stats on oil shipments from the Gulf.
    — Jim Edwards, Fortune, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of misleading
Verb
  • In the highlight, Marshall retrieves the ball and oddly fires it back to the infield, fooling no one.
    — Tyler Kepner, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2026
  • Anybody hoping that a Netanyahu defeat in October and the emergence of a less controversial successor will reset the table is likely fooling themselves.
    — Daniel DePetris, Chicago Tribune, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of fooling
Adjective
  • The technology was also tested against deceptive behaviour, an in a different scenario, fishing boats appeared to retreat while vessels from another direction accelerated toward the coastguard ship.
    — Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 30 Aug. 2026
  • The siblings are likely to dispute Jeanie’s characterization of their actions as deceptive and clandestine, perhaps by pointing to communications with their sister and her responses.
    — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of deceptive
Verb
  • An English springer spaniel in Alabama loves nothing more than spending her whole day in the pool and has taken to tricking her parents into letting her into the pool every day.
    — Saman Shafiq, USA Today, 6 Sep. 2026
  • In many cases, the robot tail wags the living dog by tricking it—tricking us—into caring about obscure metrics, then gamifying the process of improving them.
    — Hillary Busis, Vanity Fair, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of tricking
Adjective
  • The lawsuit filed by two former employees contains allegations that are false, misleading, and unsupported by credible evidence.
    — Devon Henderson, New York Times, 2 Sep. 2026
  • Zucker provided false and misleading statements to investigators, according to a summary of findings released Wednesday.
    — Dan Mangan, CNBC, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of false
Verb
  • Williams will not be charged because Heggebo’s offence was successfully deceiving a match official.
    — Graham Scott, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026
  • Your eyes aren't deceiving you — the little delivery robots rolling down Washington DC streets are becoming a more common sight.
    — Mike Stunson, USA Today, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of deceiving

Browse Nearby Words

deludes
deluding
deluge
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Deluding.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/deluding. Accessed 8 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

A List of Most Commonly Confused Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 4
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
anagrams on a chalk board
Word Builder Quiz Vol. 2 Pick the letter that when added to a word will ma...
See All