deceptively

American

[dih-sep-tiv-lee] / dɪˈsɛp tɪv li /

adverb

in a way that tends to mislead or give a false impression.

This game is played with such deceptively simple materials, yet is so interestingly complex!
Some of these harmful foods are deceptively marketed as "healthy" by giant food corporations.
in a way that is perceptually misleading.

If only a segment of sky is visible, the bands of Earth’s shadow and the Belt of Venus appear deceptively parallel.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Etymology

Origin of deceptively

First recorded in 1810–20; deceptive ( def. ) + -ly ( def. )

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

In this case, it wants the court to order Netflix to delete any data "deceptively collected from Texans", cease processing their data for targeted advertising and to turn auto-play off by default for children's profiles.

From BBC • May 12, 2026

For nearly a decade, journalists have wrestled with a deceptively simple question: Does covering extremists expose them or empower them?

From Salon • Apr. 6, 2026

Drawing on contemporary color standards and systems such as Munsell’s, he set out to do something deceptively difficult: translate the scientific lexicon into terms everyday readers could understand.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 27, 2026

"They rely on highly personalised phishing emails, automatically generated malware, and synthetic identities that appear deceptively real," he said.

From Barron's • Mar. 25, 2026

I am broad-shouldered and well over six feet, while she is smaller than a Scholar woman, even, with a deceptively willowy form.

From "An Ember in the Ashes" by Sabaa Tahir

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023