deceptively
Americanadverb
-
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
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.
Chicago accused the company of posting restaurant menus on DoorDash without the proprietors’ permission and luring in customers with deceptively low fees that later grew.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2026
The Endeavour orbiter landing simulator looks deceptively easy to operate, but once you grab the rudimentary joystick and attempt to glide the orbiter to a safe landing on the runway, you might just crash.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 28, 2026
Adidas is suing Australian label White Fox for selling and advertising clothes with a four-striped design, arguing it is "deceptively similar" to the German brand's distinct logo.
From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026
Such is the beauty of Mungiu’s observational, deceptively nuanced writing.
From Salon ● Sep. 19, 2026
Doc is rather small, deceptively small, for he is wiry and very strong and when passionate anger comes on him he can be very fierce.
From "Cannery Row" by John Steinbeck
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