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dissemble

[dih-sem-buh l]
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verb (used with object), dis·sem·bled, dis·sem·bling.
  1. to give a false or misleading appearance to; conceal the truth or real nature of: to dissemble one's incompetence in business.
  2. to put on the appearance of; feign: to dissemble innocence.
  3. Obsolete. to let pass unnoticed; ignore.
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verb (used without object), dis·sem·bled, dis·sem·bling.
  1. to conceal one's true motives, thoughts, etc., by some pretense; speak or act hypocritically.
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Origin of dissemble

1490–1500; alteration (by association with obsolete semble to resemble) of Middle English dissimulen < Latin dissimulāre. See dis-1, simulate
Related formsdis·sem·bler, noundis·sem·bling·ly, adverbun·dis·sem·bled, adjectiveun·dis·sem·bling, adjectiveun·dis·sem·bling·ly, adverbwell-dis·sem·bled, adjective
Can be confuseddisassemble dissemble

Synonyms

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1. mask, hide, camouflage, dissimulate.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for dissembler

Historical Examples

  • Balboa was something of a dissembler himself on occasion, as you will see.

    South American Fights and Fighters

    Cyrus Townsend Brady

  • He was not a hypocrite, indeed, as to his virtues—a dissembler only in his ambition.

  • How are hypocrite and dissembler contrasted with each other?

    English Synonyms and Antonyms

    James Champlin Fernald

  • Well, thought I, I must put on the dissembler a little, I see.

  • At last, as he was no dissembler, he burst out passionately, "Why are you my enemy?"

    Hard Cash

    Charles Reade

British Dictionary definitions for dissembler

dissemble

verb
  1. to conceal (one's real motives, emotions, etc) by pretence
  2. (tr) to pretend; simulate
  3. obsolete to ignore
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Derived Formsdissemblance, noundissembler, noundissembling, noun, adjectivedissemblingly, adverb

Word Origin

C15: from earlier dissimulen, from Latin dissimulāre; probably influenced by obsolete semble to resemble
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

Word Origin and History for dissembler

n.

1520s, agent noun from dissemble.

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dissemble

v.

early 15c. (implied in dissemblable), apparently a variant of Middle English dissimule (influenced by Middle French dessembler or English resemble), late 14c., from Old French dissimuler, from Latin dissimulare (see dissimulation). Related: Dissembled; dissembling.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper