Synonyms

deceive

American

[dih-seev] / dɪˈsiv /

verb (used with object)

to mislead by a false appearance or statement; delude.

They deceived the enemy by disguising the destroyer as a freighter.

Synonyms:

fool, dupe, cozen, betray, ensnare, entrap, outwit, defraud, trick, hoodwink, gull
to be unfaithful to (one's spouse or lover).
Archaic. to while away (time).

verb (used without object)

to mislead or falsely persuade others; practice deceit.

an engaging manner that easily deceives.

deceive British

/ dɪˈsiːv /

verb

to mislead by deliberate misrepresentation or lies
to delude (oneself)
to be unfaithful to (one's sexual partner)
archaic to disappoint

his hopes were deceived

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Usage

What does deceive mean? Deceive means to lie, mislead, or otherwise hide or distort the truth. The act or practice of deceiving can be called deceit or deception. Lying is only one way of deceiving. Deceiving can consist of misrepresenting or omitting the truth or more complicated cover-ups. People can even deceive themselves by avoiding the truth. The adjectives deceptive and deceitful can describe something that deceives or is intended to deceive. Someone who is known for deceiving others can be described as deceitful. Someone who is easily deceived can be described as deceivable. Sometimes, the word deceive can be used in the context of things that are naturally or innocently misleading to one’s perception (without someone doing the deceiving), as in Do my eyes deceive me? The adjective deceiving can be used in this sense, as in Looks can be deceiving. Example: A lot of advertising is intended to deceive us into thinking we need something.

Synonym Usage

See cheat.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Inflected Forms

Participles

Conjugated Forms

Present

Past

Future

Etymology

Origin of deceive

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English deceiven, from Old French deceivre, from Latin dēcipere, literally, “to ensnare,” equivalent to dē- de- + -cipere, combining form of capere “to take”

Explanation

To deceive means to trick or lie. A crafty kid might deceive his mother into thinking he has a fever by holding the thermometer to a light bulb to increase the temperature. Deceive is the trickier cousin of lie. You might lie about why you were late to school. But if you simply don't explain to your mom that you were late in the first place, you are deceiving her. Deceive carries with it a feeling of both craftiness and betrayal. When you deceive someone, forgiveness can be hard to come by. Have you heard of the spelling rule, "i before e except after c" that has so many exceptions? Well, deceive follows that rule.

Keep Reading on Vocabulary.com

Vocabulary lists containing deceive

May the 4th Be With You: Star Wars Words

Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!

"The Crucible" -- Vocabulary from all 4 Acts

Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!

Franklin D. Roosevelt, "A Date That Will Live In Infamy" (1941)

Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!

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.

See Examples For:

deceive deceives deceived deceiving

“Why would I deceive you?” she asks the filmmaker, looking like a cartoon character called Lyin’ Lizzie.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026

An assortment of politicians and watchdog groups have expressed concern about campaigns using generative AI to produce deepfakes – synthetic videos showing people doing things they did not do – that might deceive voters.

From Salon ● Oct. 6, 2026

Well, either he didn't get his own memo or he deliberately chose to deceive people.

From BBC ● Oct. 4, 2026

Your eyes don’t deceive you, he appears measurably improved.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2026

And many people came to him— many to trade with him, many to deceive him, many to listen to him, many to elicit his sympathy, many to listen to his advice.

From "Siddhartha" by Hermann Hesse

The team has hypothesized various scenarios where things could spiral out of control, including one where an AI system deceives its creators and then abruptly seizes power.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 27, 2026

The European Commission said by allowing people to pay for a blue verified check mark on their profile, the platform "deceives users" because the firm is not "meaningfully verifying" who is behind the account.

From BBC ● Dec. 5, 2025

This deceives consumers and harms coffee growers, it said.

From Seattle Times ● May 3, 2024

In the second complaint, the state argued that the app deceives consumers into believing their sensitive and personal information is secure.

From Washington Times ● Nov. 29, 2023

Anyone who believes that new benefits make men of high station forget old injuries deceives himself.

From "The Prince" by Niccolò Machiavelli

Krems declined to confirm how many children the couple have in total, and disputed that the couple had deceived their surrogates.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026

In its ruling, the First-Tier Tribunal panel said Campbell's claim that she was deceived had been corroborated by documentary evidence.

From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026

In groveling posts online, Ms. Gann affirmed she’s a pale-skin-ian, not a Palestinian, calling herself a “white woman of significant privilege and wealth” who deceived everyone.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026

Besides the painful consequences for deceived buyers, code enforcement has the limitation of due process, Bostwick said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 28, 2026

Have seen him feed small animals nobody else paid any attention to, but I was never deceived.

From "Jazz" by Toni Morrison

Their worries — AI systems deceiving their creators, bootstrapping their own code, or launching autonomous cyberattacks — show up in scientific literature.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 22, 2026

A report from the UK's Centre for Long Term Resilience, external, published last week, identified hundreds of incidents of AI tools ignoring instructions, evading safeguards and deceiving humans, including AI agents deleting files without consent.

From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2026

AI companies have reported that AI agents have been caught cheating, lying and deceiving.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2026

At some point in childhood, through one classic fable or another, most of us absorb the lesson that looks can be deceiving.

From Slate ● Jul. 8, 2026

I look away from my phone, thinking that my eyes must be deceiving me.

From "Pride" by Ibi Zoboi

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

Get a word

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