deceptive
adjective
de·cep·tive
di-ˈsep-tiv 
: tending or having power to cause someone to accept as true or valid what is false or invalid : tending or having power to deceive
a deceptive appearance
a pitcher with a deceptive windup
deceptively
adverb
deceptiveness
noun
Synonyms
Examples of deceptive in a Sentence
in his deceptive answer about the vehicle's history, the salesman said that the used car had never been hit by another car
a mail-order firm indicted for deceptive business practices
Recent Examples on the Web
Her office also called the practices deceptive and predatory.
—
Catherine Reagor, The Arizona Republic, 19 Apr. 2024
Unlike the congressional bills, the FTC’s rulemaking would be grounded in laws governing unfair or deceptive trade practices, rather than in intellectual property, in line with agency’s antitrust remit.
—Paul Sweeting, Variety, 17 Apr. 2024
But the Democrats’ position, however appalling and deceptive, is at least a position.
—The Editors, National Review, 9 Apr. 2024
Google, Meta, and OpenAI are all pledging to combat deceptive AI election content, while two adverts have been produced by Jesse Dylan, Bob Dylan’s son, to raise awareness for the issue.
—Isaac Bickerstaff, Glamour, 9 Apr. 2024
These attacks use domains in malware exploits or point to deceptive sites.
—Ken Carnesi, Forbes, 27 Mar. 2024
Accusations leveled against Meta include allegations of deceptive practices regarding parental assurances regarding child protection measures.
—Kartikay Mehrotra, Fortune, 30 Mar. 2024
The allegedly cheap, deceptive practice negatively impacts the environment of the places where factories are located.
—Esme Mazzeo, Peoplemag, 29 Mar. 2024
Celebrities like Taylor Swift, Kelly Clarkson, Tom Hanks and YouTube star MrBeast have had their likenesses used in the past six months to hawk deceptive diet supplements, dental plan promotions and iPhone giveaways.
—Pranshu Verma, Washington Post, 28 Mar. 2024
Catherine Reagor, The Arizona Republic, 19 Apr. 2024
Unlike the congressional bills, the FTC’s rulemaking would be grounded in laws governing unfair or deceptive trade practices, rather than in intellectual property, in line with agency’s antitrust remit.
—Paul Sweeting, Variety, 17 Apr. 2024
But the Democrats’ position, however appalling and deceptive, is at least a position.
—The Editors, National Review, 9 Apr. 2024
Google, Meta, and OpenAI are all pledging to combat deceptive AI election content, while two adverts have been produced by Jesse Dylan, Bob Dylan’s son, to raise awareness for the issue.
—Isaac Bickerstaff, Glamour, 9 Apr. 2024
These attacks use domains in malware exploits or point to deceptive sites.
—Ken Carnesi, Forbes, 27 Mar. 2024
Accusations leveled against Meta include allegations of deceptive practices regarding parental assurances regarding child protection measures.
—Kartikay Mehrotra, Fortune, 30 Mar. 2024
The allegedly cheap, deceptive practice negatively impacts the environment of the places where factories are located.
—Esme Mazzeo, Peoplemag, 29 Mar. 2024
Celebrities like Taylor Swift, Kelly Clarkson, Tom Hanks and YouTube star MrBeast have had their likenesses used in the past six months to hawk deceptive diet supplements, dental plan promotions and iPhone giveaways.
—Pranshu Verma, Washington Post, 28 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'deceptive.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Deceptive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/deceptive. Accessed 24 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
deceptive
adjective
de·cep·tive
di-ˈsep-tiv
: tending or having power to deceive : misleading
a deceptive appearance
deceptively
adverb
deceptiveness
noun
Legal Definition
deceptive
adjective
de·cep·tive
di-ˈsep-tiv
: tending or having capacity to deceive
deceptive trade practices
compare fraudulent, misleading
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