PREVARICATE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does prevaricate mean? 

• PREVARICATE (verb)
  The verb PREVARICATE has 1 sense:

1. be deliberately ambiguous or unclear in order to mislead or withhold information

  Familiarity information: PREVARICATE used as a verb is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• PREVARICATE (verb)

Present simple: I / you / we / they prevaricate    ... he / she / it prevaricates   
Past simple: prevaricated   
Past participle: prevaricated   
-ing form: prevaricating   

Sense 1

Meaning:

Be deliberately ambiguous or unclear in order to mislead or withhold information

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Synonyms:

beat around the bush; equivocate; palter; prevaricate; tergiversate

Hypernyms (to "prevaricate" is one way to...):

misinform; mislead (give false or misleading information to)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s PP

Derivation:

prevarication (the deliberate act of deviating from the truth)

prevarication (intentionally vague or ambiguous)

prevarication (a statement that deviates from or perverts the truth)

prevaricator (a person who has lied or who lies repeatedly)

 Context examples 

If you prevaricate or trifle with me, I give you my assurance that the matter will pass out of my hands forever.

(His Last Bow, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)