1
as in deception
the inclination or practice of misleading others through lies or trickery
a crafty child given to frequent dissembling to get what she wants
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in deceit
the pretending of having virtues, principles, or beliefs that one in fact does not have
in the end the preacher's smarmy dissembling is discovered, and he is exposed as a fraud
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in lying
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in pretending
to present a false appearance of
he dissembled happiness at the news that his old girlfriend was getting married—to someone else
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in dissimulating
to take on a false or deceptive appearance
children learn to dissemble at a surprisingly early age
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dissembling
Noun
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As an escaped convict posing as a beloved preacher, and as his gentle, upright twin, Robeson embodies a devastating split between appearance and truth, and whose uncanny doubling plays out in a community shaped by racial violence, spiritual deception, and economic precarity.—
Samantha Bergeson,
IndieWire,
21 May 2025 -
Ellie, however, cannot abide Joel’s deception, and interrupts to tell the truth to Gail, who then slaps Joel and tells him to leave.—
Adam B. Vary,
Variety,
19 May 2025
Noun
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None of these spring explorations of sisterly deceit and self-deception has been able to surpass Apple TV+’s Bad Sisters as the recent genre peak.—
Daniel Fienberg,
HollywoodReporter,
28 May 2025
-
Starring Tom Cruise, the movies are loaded with action, deceit and globe-spanning adventures – everything a good spy film should be.—
Keith Langston,
People.com,
24 May 2025
Verb
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This prompt gives you enough talking points to contribute thoughtfully without pretending to be an expert.—
Dr. Diane Hamilton,
Forbes.com,
4 Apr. 2025
-
Interspersed in the narrative, there are South Asian folktales about a jackal who is punished for pretending to be a king and a foolish man who puts all his eggs in a basket.—
Malaka Gharib,
NPR,
21 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
Impulsive, egocentric, and mendacious, Trump has, in the same span, set fire to the integrity of his office.—
David Remnick,
New Yorker,
27 Apr. 2025
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Her unsettling command of the character — who was equal parts sweet, vulnerable, mendacious, and menacing — was one of the highlights of the series.—
Jake Kanter,
Deadline,
24 Dec. 2024
Verb
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Instead of assuming what people want or need, AI and machine learning analyze actual data and recommend alternatives based on individual situations.—
Alison Coleman,
Forbes.com,
13 Apr. 2025
-
The new policy also takes quite a leap by assuming that most of the nation’s elderly population have ever even heard of Twitter, including the New Jersey caller’s 96-year-old mother.—
Leonard Greene,
New York Daily News,
13 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
More than £46 billion in loans had been disbursed by various lenders through the scheme, according to the Department for Business and Trade, but the agency also admitted there had been more than 100,000 cases of loss due to fraud and error.—
Robert Olsen,
Forbes.com,
28 May 2025
-
What did Todd and Julie Chrisley go to prison for? After nearly a decade on air, the pair faced legal trouble for a number of bank and tax fraud offenses.—
Solcyré Burga,
Time,
28 May 2025
Noun
-
But a groundswell of protest art was answering the call with a new kind of ardent feeling that damned the false piety and hypocrisy of homophobic Christian doctrine.—
Marc Weingarten,
Los Angeles Times,
22 May 2025
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This becomes fuel for a spiraling breakdown, for Taylor and for all the other women, full of DMs and text-thread images shown on-camera as evidence of various hypocrisies.—
Kathryn VanArendonk,
Vulture,
19 May 2025
Adjective
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The rise of Darth Vader Anakin Skywalker discovers Palpatine's true identity as a Sith Lord and backs him instead of the Jedi Masters who intended to arrest the duplicitous chancellor. —As seen in Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith.—
Nick Romano,
EW.com,
25 May 2025
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In scenes that take up so much more screentime than is strictly necessary, Ethan gets back on the trail of Gabriel (Esai Morales), the Entity’s duplicitous sidekick, who aims to bring it under his control once its plan gets underway.—
Damon Wise,
Deadline,
14 May 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Dissembling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dissembling. Accessed 4 Jun. 2025.
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