deceive

verb

de·ceive di-ˈsēv

deceived; deceiving

Synonyms of deceive next

transitive verb

: to cause to accept as true or valid what is false or invalid

deceiving customers about the condition of the cars

bluffing at poker in order to deceive the other players

archaic : ensnare

… he it was whose guile … deceived the mother of mankind …—

John Milton

obsolete : to be false to

You have deceived our trust …—

Shakespeare

archaic : to fail to fulfill

… nor are my hopes deceived.—

John Dryden

archaic : to while away

These occupations oftentimes deceived the listless hour …—

William Wordsworth

obsolete : cheat

… deceived me of a good sum of money …—

William Oldys

intransitive verb

: to make someone believe something that is not true : to practice deceit

also : to give a false impression

appearances can deceive

deceiver noun

deceivingly

di-ˈsē-viŋ-lē

adverb

Choose the Right Synonym for deceive

deceive, mislead, delude, beguile mean to lead astray or frustrate usually by underhandedness.

deceive implies imposing a false idea or belief that causes ignorance, bewilderment, or helplessness.

tried to deceive me about the cost

mislead implies a leading astray that may or may not be intentional.

I was misled by the confusing sign

delude implies deceiving so thoroughly as to obscure the truth.

we were deluded into thinking we were safe

beguile stresses the use of charm and persuasion in deceiving.

was beguiled by false promises

Examples of deceive in a Sentence

Her parents punished her for trying to deceive them. He was accused of deceiving the customer about the condition of the car. People who think they can eat whatever they want without harming their health are deceiving themselves. Remember that appearances can deceive—just because something looks good doesn't mean it is good.

Recent Examples on the Web The technology can deceive and confuse voters, casting doubt over what is real, adding to the disinformation that can be spread by social networks. —

Lucía Cholakian Herrera, New York Times, 15 Nov. 2023 In her mind, Western politicians know how to deceive their population, but in Russia no one is pretending. —

Foreign Affairs, 10 Nov. 2023 Early buying blitzes can be deceiving, however: As worries grew more heightened about a recession, Fox’s ad-sales executives had to scramble to unload the remaining 5%. —

Brian Steinberg, Variety, 2 Nov. 2023 The theme is common to both writers: in enforcing injustice, the colonist deceives, and destroys, himself. —

David Remnick, The New Yorker, 28 Oct. 2023 If true, his story would confirm one of the MAGA right’s articles of faith: the existence of a deep state devoted to suppressing information and deceiving the American people. —

Hari Kunzru, Harper's Magazine, 10 Oct. 2023 The goal of the service is to help candidates protect the use of their content and likeness, and prevent deceiving information from being shared. Called Content Credentials as a Service, users like electoral campaigns can use the tool to attach information to an image or video’s metadata. —

Emilia David, The Verge, 8 Nov. 2023 The Education Department dunned GCU, the nation’s largest Christian college, $37.7 million for allegedly deceiving prospective students about the cost of its doctoral programs. —

The Editorial Board, WSJ, 6 Nov. 2023 Alongside the threat to jobs, the possibility of AI going rogue and deceiving its users is one of the key concerns among the tech’s detractors. —

Byryan Hogg, Fortune, 3 Nov. 2023 See More

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