Deceiving — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

verb phrase adjective /di-ˈsēv/ (verb) /ˌself-di-ˈsēv/ (verb) de·ceive

Meaning & Definition of Deceiving

Deceiving (verb)

  1. to cause to accept as true or valid what is false or invalid
  2. ensnare
  3. to be false to
  4. to deceive oneself especially concerning oneself

Deceiving (phrase)

  1. —used to say that something can be very different from how it seems or appears to be

Deceiving (adjective) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. tending or having power to deceive

    "the deceiving nature of most flat maps of the globe causes some people to believe erroneously that Greenland is actually bigger than South America"

    similar: beguiling, deceitful, deceptive, deluding, delusive, delusory, fallacious, false, misleading, specious
    related: artful, crafty, cunning, devious, foxy, guileful, shady, shifty, slick, sly, sneaking, sneaky, subtile, subtle, trick, trickish, tricky, underhand, underhanded, wily, inaccurate, incorrect, wrong, bewildering, confounding, distracting, perplexing, puzzling, ambidextrous, crooked, defrauding, dishonest, dissembling, double-dealing, duplicitous, faithless, fast, fraudulent, knavish, lying, mendacious, untrustworthy, untruthful, bogus, counterfeit, fake, feigned, forged, jive (slang), phony, sham, spurious, insidious, perfidious, treacherous, ambiguous, circuitous, equivocal, evasive, artificial, backhanded, hypocritical, insincere, left-handed, two-faced
    opposite: aboveboard, forthright, nondeceptive, straightforward
    near: candid, direct, foursquare, frank, free-spoken, open, openhearted, outspoken, plain, plainspoken, straight, clarifying, elucidative, explanatory, illuminating, revealing, revelatory, honest, trustworthy, truthful

Deceiving (verb) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. to cause to believe what is untrue

    "he went to great lengths to deceive his family about the nature of his new job at the mall"

    similar: bamboozling, beguiling, bluffing, buffaloing, burning, catching, conning, cozening, deluding, duping, faking out, fooling, gaffing, gammoning, gulling, having, having on (chiefly British), hoaxing, hoodwinking, hornswoggling, humbugging, juggling, misguiding, misinforming, misleading, snookering, snowing, spoofing, stringing along, suckering, sucking in, taking in, tricking, doing a number on, leading one down the garden path, pulling one's leg, pulling the wool over one's eyes
    related: kidding, putting on, teasing, bleeding, cheating, chiseling, defrauding, diddling, euchring, fleecing, flimflamming, hustling, mulcting, rooking, shortchanging, skinning, squeezing, sticking, stinging, swindling
    opposite: undeceiving
    near: debunking, exposing, revealing, showing up, uncloaking, uncovering, unmasking, disclosing, divulging, telling, unveiling, disabusing, disenchanting, disillusioning

Related Entry: Deceive (verb)

Deceive is a different word from Deceiving. The synonyms below are for deceive, not for deceiving.

  1. to cause to believe what is untrue

    "he went to great lengths to deceive his family about the nature of his new job at the mall"

    similar: bamboozle, beguile, bluff, buffalo, burn, catch, con, cozen, delude, dupe, fake out, fool, gaff, gammon, gull, have, have on (chiefly British), hoax, hoodwink, hornswoggle, humbug, juggle, misguide, misinform, mislead, snooker, snow, spoof, string along, sucker, suck in, take in, trick, do a number on, lead one down the garden path, pull one's leg, pull the wool over one's eyes
    related: kid, put on, tease, bleed, cheat, chisel, defraud, diddle, euchre, fleece, flimflam, hustle, mulct, rook, shortchange, skin, squeeze, stick, sting, swindle
    opposite: undeceive
    near: debunk, expose, reveal, show up, uncloak, uncover, unmask, disclose, divulge, tell, unveil, disabuse, disenchant, disillusion

Synonyms, Thesaurus & Another Word for Deceiving

The most common words with a similar meaning to Deceiving:

Chiefly British: having on
beguiling, deceitful, deceptive, deluding, delusive, delusory, fallacious, false, misleading, specious, bamboozling, bluffing, buffaloing, burning, catching, conning, cozening, duping, faking out, fooling, gaffing, gammoning, gulling, having, hoaxing, hoodwinking, hornswoggling, humbugging, juggling, misguiding, misinforming, snookering, snowing, spoofing, stringing along, suckering, sucking in, taking in, tricking, doing a number on

Antonyms & Opposite Words for Deceiving

Words with the opposite meaning of Deceiving:

aboveboard, forthright, nondeceptive, straightforward, undeceiving

Related Words for Deceiving

artful, crafty, cunning, devious, foxy, guileful, shady, shifty, slick, sly, sneaking, sneaky, subtile, subtle, trick, trickish, tricky, underhand, underhanded, wily, inaccurate, incorrect, wrong, bewildering, confounding, distracting, perplexing, puzzling, ambidextrous, crooked

Near Antonyms of Deceiving

candid, direct, foursquare, frank, free-spoken, open, openhearted, outspoken, plain, plainspoken, straight, clarifying, elucidative, explanatory, illuminating, revealing, revelatory, honest, trustworthy, truthful, debunking, exposing, showing up, uncloaking, uncovering, unmasking, disclosing, divulging, telling, unveiling

Word Forms of Deceiving

Inflections: deceived, self-deceived, self-deceiving, self-deceives

Derived words: deceiver (noun), deceivingly (adverb), self-deceived (adjective), self-deceiving (adjective), self-deceiver (noun)

Origin & Etymology of Deceiving

Middle English, from Anglo-French deceivre, from Latin decipere, from de- + capere to take heave:1

First known use: 13th centuryt

Words & Phrases Containing Deceiving

looks can be deceiving/deceptive

Frequently Asked Questions about Deceiving

What does "Deceiving" mean?

"Deceiving" means to cause to accept as true or valid what is false or invalid. As an a verb, a phrase and an adjective, it is defined as: to cause to accept as true or valid what is false or invalid. It has 2 distinct senses.

What is another word for "Deceiving"?

Other words for "Deceiving" include beguiling, deceitful, deceptive, deluding, delusive, delusory, fallacious and false. The best synonym depends on which meaning of "Deceiving" you intend.

What are different ways to say "Deceiving"?

There are 128 words and phrases with a similar meaning to "Deceiving". Common alternatives include beguiling, deceitful, deceptive, deluding, delusive, delusory, fallacious, false, misleading and specious.

What is the opposite of "Deceiving"?

Antonyms of "Deceiving" include aboveboard, forthright, nondeceptive, straightforward and undeceiving. Near antonyms include candid, direct, foursquare and frank.

How do you use "Deceiving" in a sentence?

Examples of "Deceiving" in a sentence: "the deceiving nature of most flat maps of the globe causes some people to believe erroneously that Greenland is actually bigger than South America"; "he went to great lengths to deceive his family about the nature of his new job at the mall".

Is "Deceiving" a noun, verb, or adjective?

"Deceiving" can be used as a verb, a phrase and an adjective, depending on the context.

How do you pronounce "Deceiving"?

"Deceiving" is pronounced /di-ˈsēv/ as a verb and /ˌself-di-ˈsēv/ as a verb and divided into syllables as de·ceive.

What is the origin of the word "Deceiving"?

"Deceiving" comes from Middle English, from Anglo-French deceivre, from Latin decipere, from de- + capere to take heave:1. First known use: 13th centuryt.