tergiversate
verb (used without object)
to change repeatedly one's attitude or opinions with respect to a cause, subject, etc.; equivocate.
tergiversation
-
a word derived from
tergiversate.
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.
Another has been the behavior of its distinguished columnists-the lamentation of Mark Sullivan, the oscillation of Dorothy Thompson, the tergiversation of Walter Lippmann.
From Time Magazine Archive
Lincoln would not allow himself to be swerved from the main issue by any tergiversation or personal attacks.
From Abraham Lincoln by George Haven Putnam
Vincent St. George, disgusted at such gross tergiversation, flies entirely away from the point at issue, and applies those remarks to Julie which all disappointed lovers seem to be bound to utter in such cases.
From Punch, or the London Charivari, Volume 1, November 6, 1841, by Various
Just in the same way, the violent and prolonged debates, the intrigue, the tergiversation, which attended the acceptance of the famous Bull Unigenitus, taught shrewd observers how it is that religions establish themselves.
From Diderot and the Encyclopædists (Vol 1 of 2) by John Morley
Our vulgar idea of a party is a week or fortnight of previous discomfort and chaotic tergiversation, and the mistress of it all distracted and worn out with endless cares.
From Pink and White Tyranny A Society Novel by Harriet Beecher Stowe
