Deceive

Deceive
Deceive De*ceive", v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Deceived}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Deceiving}.] [OE. deceveir, F. d['e]cevoir, fr. L. decipere to catch, insnare, deceive; de- + capere to take, catch. See {Capable}, and cf. {Deceit}, {Deception}.] 1. To lead into error; to cause to believe what is false, or disbelieve what is true; to impose upon; to mislead; to cheat; to disappoint; to delude; to insnare. [1913 Webster]

Evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived. --2 Tim. iii. 13. [1913 Webster]

Nimble jugglers that deceive the eye. --Shak. [1913 Webster]

What can 'scape the eye Of God all-seeing, or deceive his heart? --Milton. [1913 Webster]

2. To beguile; to amuse, so as to divert the attention; to while away; to take away as if by deception. [1913 Webster]

These occupations oftentimes deceived The listless hour. --Wordsworth. [1913 Webster]

3. To deprive by fraud or stealth; to defraud. [Obs.] [1913 Webster]

Plant fruit trees in large borders, and set therein fine flowers, but thin and sparingly, lest they deceive the trees. --Bacon.

Syn: {Deceive}, {Delude}, {Mislead}.

Usage: Deceive is a general word applicable to any kind of misrepresentation affecting faith or life. To delude, primarily, is to make sport of, by deceiving, and is accomplished by playing upon one's imagination or credulity, as by exciting false hopes, causing him to undertake or expect what is impracticable, and making his failure ridiculous. It implies some infirmity of judgment in the victim, and intention to deceive in the deluder. But it is often used reflexively, indicating that a person's own weakness has made him the sport of others or of fortune; as, he deluded himself with a belief that luck would always favor him. To mislead is to lead, guide, or direct in a wrong way, either willfully or ignorantly. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • deceive — de‧ceive [dɪˈsiːv] verb [transitive] to make someone believe something that is not true in order to get what you want: • Postal officials have long deceived the public on how slow mail delivery really is. deceive somebody into something •… …   Financial and business terms

  • deceive — de·ceive vb de·ceived, de·ceiv·ing vt: to cause to accept as true or valid what is false or invalid vi: to practice deceit compare defraud, mislead Merriam Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam Webster …   Law dictionary

  • deceive — [dē sēv′, disēv′] vt. deceived, deceiving [ME deceiven < OFr deceveir < L decipere, to ensnare, deceive < de , from + capere, to take: see HAVE] 1. to make (a person) believe what is not true; delude; mislead 2. Archaic to be false to;… …   English World dictionary

  • deceive — c.1300, from O.Fr. decevoir (12c., Mod.Fr. décevoir) to deceive, from L. decipere to ensnare, take in, beguile, cheat, from de from or pejorative + capere to take (see CAPABLE (Cf. capable)). Related: Deceived; deceiver; deceiving …   Etymology dictionary

  • deceive — deceive, mislead, delude, beguile, betray, double crossmean to lead astray or into evil or to frustrate by under handedness or craft. A person or thing deceives one by leading one to take something false as true, something nonexistent as real,… …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • deceive — [v] mislead; be dishonest bamboozle*, beat, beat out of, beguile, betray, bilk, buffalo*, burn, cheat, circumvent, clip, con, cozen, cross up, defraud, delude, disappoint, double cross, dupe, ensnare, entrap, fake, falsify, fleece, fool, gouge,… …   New thesaurus

  • deceive — ► VERB 1) deliberately mislead into believing something false. 2) (of a thing) give a mistaken impression. DERIVATIVES deceiver noun. ORIGIN Old French deceivre, from Latin decipere ensnare, cheat …   English terms dictionary

  • deceive — de|ceive [dıˈsi:v] v [T] [Date: 1200 1300; : Old French; Origin: deceivre, from Latin decipere] 1.) to make someone believe something that is not true = ↑trick →↑deception ▪ He had been deceived by a young man claiming to be the son of a… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • deceive */ — UK [dɪˈsiːv] / US [dɪˈsɪv] verb [transitive] Word forms deceive : present tense I/you/we/they deceive he/she/it deceives present participle deceiving past tense deceived past participle deceived Metaphor: Deceiving someone is like sending or… …   English dictionary

  • deceive — [[t]dɪsi͟ːv[/t]] deceives, deceiving, deceived 1) VERB If you deceive someone, you make them believe something that is not true, usually in order to get some advantage for yourself. [V n] He has deceived and disillusioned us all... [V n into ing] …   English dictionary

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