Synonyms of double-dealing

double-dealing 1 of 2

adjective

1

as in fraudulent

marked by, based on, or done by the use of dishonest methods to acquire something of value

double-dealing business practices that are being investigated by the state's attorney general

Synonyms & Similar Words

• fraudulent
• dishonest
• false
• deceptive
• deceitful
• crooked
• misleading
• duplicitous
• defrauding
• deceiving
• beguiling
• specious
• delusive
• fallacious
• delusory
• deluding
• spurious

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• honest
• truthful
• true
• legitimate
• aboveboard
• valid

2

as in double

not being or expressing what one appears to be or express

the double-dealing salesman never told me that the car had been in an accident and repaired

Synonyms & Similar Words

• double
• fake
• lip
• hypocritical
• strained
• superficial
• meaningless
• counterfeit
• pretended
• insincere
• feigned
• two-faced
• unctuous
• hollow
• mechanical
• artificial
• backhanded
• phony
• jive
• pious
• double-faced
• unnatural
• false
• dishonest
• assumed
• mealymouthed
• Janus-faced
• mealy
• phony-baloney
• affected
• deceitful
• contrived
• empty
• simulated
• Pecksniffian
• left-handed
• forced
• sham
• devious
• untruthful
• glib
• put-on
• claptrap
• facile
• sanctimonious
• jocular
• bogus
• pharisaical
• facetious
• tongue-in-cheek
• campy
• simon-pure
• canting
• self-righteous

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• genuine
• honest
• sincere
• artless
• unfeigned
• candid
• heartfelt
• plain
• direct
• forthright
• frank
• open
• undesigning
• straightforward
• heart-to-heart

3

as in deceptive

given to or marked by cheating and deception

the double-dealing team owners were pitting the two cities against one another, both of whom badly wanted the franchise

Synonyms & Similar Words

• fraudulent
• deceptive
• shady
• crooked
• dishonest
• duplicitous
• rogue
• underhanded
• shifty
• false
• underhand
• fast
• bent
• guileful
• artful
• unscrupulous
• treacherous
• sharp
• unprincipled
• cunning
• deceitful
• deceiving
• unethical
• unconscionable
• subtle
• wily
• crafty
• sly
• delusive
• perfidious
• beguiling
• slick
• cagey
• insidious
• slippery
• devious
• sneaky
• foxy
• furtive
• delusory
• tricky
• deluding
• defrauding
• sneaking
• trickish

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• honest
• straight
• ethical
• honorable
• conscientious
• scrupulous
• just
• decent
• upright
• aboveboard
• forthright
• straightforward

double-dealing

2 of 2

noun

ˌdə-bəl-ˈdē-liŋ 

as in deception

the inclination or practice of misleading others through lies or trickery

a go-between suspected of double-dealing

Synonyms & Similar Words

• deception
• deceit
• deceptiveness
• cheating
• cunning
• fraud
• deceitfulness
• duplicity
• lying
• dishonesty
• dissimulation
• fakery
• dissembling
• guile
• secrecy
• crookedness
• crookery
• cozenage
• craftiness
• cunningness
• wiliness
• dupery
• subterfuge
• prevarication
• artifice
• craft
• trickery
• chicanery
• fraudulence
• skulduggery
• mendacity
• swindling
• foxiness
• hypocrisy
• equivocation
• hanky-panky
• jugglery
• insincerity
• shrewdness
• guilefulness
• deviousness
• legerdemain
• artfulness
• obliquity
• underhandedness
• unscrupulousness
• sanctimoniousness
• fib
• wile
• sneakiness
• chicane
• caginess
• two-facedness
• untruth
• shadiness
• covertness
• slyness
• falsehood
• furtiveness
• mountebankery
• shiftiness
• slipperiness
• treacherousness
• slickness
• falsity
• smoothness
• stealthiness
• oiliness

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• sincerity
• good faith
• ingenuousness
• forthrightness
• artlessness
• frankness
• openness
• candor
• directness
• honesty
• guilelessness
• plainness
• probity
• reliability
• trustworthiness
• dependability
• goodness
• candidness
• solidity
• integrity
• righteousness
• truthfulness
• plainspokenness
• decency
• uprightness
• incorruptibility
• reliableness
• virtuousness
• trustability
• trustiness

Synonym Chooser

How does the noun double-dealing differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of double-dealing are deception, fraud, subterfuge, and trickery. While all these words mean "the acts or practices of one who deliberately deceives," double-dealing suggests treachery or at least action contrary to a professed attitude.

a go-between suspected of double-dealing

When might deception be a better fit than double-dealing?

The meanings of deception and double-dealing largely overlap; however, deception may or may not imply blameworthiness, since it may suggest cheating or merely tactical resource.

magicians are masters of deception

When is fraud a more appropriate choice than double-dealing?

While in some cases nearly identical to double-dealing, fraud always implies guilt and often criminality in act or practice.

indicted for fraud

When could subterfuge be used to replace double-dealing?

The synonyms subterfuge and double-dealing are sometimes interchangeable, but subterfuge suggests the adoption of a stratagem or the telling of a lie in order to escape guilt or to gain an end.

obtained the papers by subterfuge

When would trickery be a good substitute for double-dealing?

In some situations, the words trickery and double-dealing are roughly equivalent. However, trickery implies ingenious acts intended to dupe or cheat.

resorted to trickery to gain their ends

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of double-dealing

Adjective

The notion of reputational damage is alien to someone whose image was long ago tarnished beyond repair by grifting, lying, bullying, and double-dealing. — Eliot A. Cohen, The Atlantic, 19 Jan. 2026

Noun

For some of King’s followers, her double-dealing also is difficult to let go. — Martha Ross, Mercury News, 28 May 2026

But that rhetoric sounded hollow in the face of its dalliance with a drug-smuggling double-dealing despot like Noriega. — Time, 25 Nov. 2025

Making his Broadway debut, Burr is a cyclone as the fast-talking, double-dealing Dave Moss, who springs a plan to steal the leads on his unwilling accomplice, George Aaronow (McKean, drolly exasperated). — Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 1 Apr. 2025

Mullen's righthand man, Roger Carlson (Jesse Plemons), was double-dealing with billionaire Robert Lyndon (Clark Gregg), who ultimately ordered a hit on him in Episode 4. — Patrick Ryan, USA TODAY, 23 Feb. 2025

Through his double-dealing with the government, Carmine Falcone was Gotham’s top crime boss for over two decades, accruing massive wealth, political influence, and an elite status. — Chris O'Falt, IndieWire, 21 Oct. 2024

Far from being some dastardly act of espionage and double-dealing, Cartwright made his fateful choice out of love. — Erik Kain, Forbes, 2 Oct. 2024

While the Biden Administration seems to perceive Cambodia as an amenable partner, Manet is double-dealing Beijing and Washington. — Sam Rainsy, TIME, 24 June 2024