Prevaricate
/pɹɪˈvæɹɪkeɪt/ verb
verb ·Moderate ·College level
Definitions
Verb
- 1 To deviate, transgress; to go astray (from). intransitive, obsolete, transitive
- 2 be deliberately ambiguous or unclear in order to mislead or withhold information wordnet
- 3 To speak or act in a manner that is intentionally ambiguous or evasive; equivocate. intransitive
"The people saw the politician prevaricate every day."
- 4 To collude, as where an informer colludes with the defendant, and makes a sham prosecution. intransitive
- 5 To undertake something falsely and deceitfully, with the purpose of defeating or destroying it. UK
Antonyms
All antonymsExample
More examples"If we prevaricate and postpone this issue, the committee can continue to hide behind its inaction."
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin praevāricātus, perfect active participle of praevāricor (“to walk crookedly; to play a false or double part”), from prae- + vāricō (“to stand with feet apart, straddle”), from vāricus (“with feet spread apart”); see -ate (verb-forming suffix).