noun
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the act of deceiving or the state of being deceived
-
something that deceives; trick
Usage
What does deception mean? Deception is the act or practice of deceiving—lying, misleading, or otherwise hiding or distorting the truth. The related word deceit often means the same thing.Deception doesn’t just involve lying. It can consist of misrepresenting or omitting the truth or more complicated cover-ups. Anything that involves intentionally misleading someone is deception. People can even engage in self-deception by avoiding the truth.The word deception often implies a pattern of behavior, rather than a one-time act. The adjective deceptive can describe something that deceives or is intended to deceive. A person who engages in deception can be described as deceitful.Less commonly, the word deception can refer to an action, scheme, or trick intended to deceive, as in It was a clever deception, but I didn’t fall for it. Example: I’m sick of your constant lying and deception—I can’t trust anything you say!
Other Word Forms
- nondeception noun
- predeception noun
Etymology
Origin of deception
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English decepcioun, from Old French, from Late Latin dēceptiōn-, stem of dēceptiō “deceitfulness,” from Latin dēcept(us) “deceived” (past participle of dēcipere; deceive ) + -iō -ion
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.
“When deception is normalized within a public agency,” he said, “it also normalizes operational failure and puts people at risk.”
From Los Angeles Times
His first conviction happened in Sheffield in 1973 for obtaining money by deception.
From BBC
We identified neural circuits related to deception in Meta’s large language model Llama 70B and then manipulated them when the model turned its attention inward.
Powell was later ashamed of being the point man for that disastrous deception.
From Salon
While such mishaps do not necessarily excuse an adviser’s actions, they may not prove as disqualifying as blatant fraud or deception.
From MarketWatch
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
