Definition of PREVARICATE

prevaricate

Verb

  • be deliberately ambiguous or unclear in order to mislead or withhold information
  • To deviate, transgress; to go astray (from).
  • To speak or act in a manner that is intentionally ambiguous or evasive; equivocate.
  • To collude, as where an informer colludes with the defendant, and makes a sham prosecution.
  • To undertake something falsely and deceitfully, with the purpose of defeating or destroying it.

Examples

  • The people saw the politician prevaricate every day.

Origin / Etymology

From the participle stem of Latin praevāricārī (“to walk crookedly; to play a false or double part”), from prae- + vāricāre (“to stand with feet apart, straddle”), from vāricus (“with feet spread apart”).

Synonyms

beat around the bush, equivocate, palter, tergiversate, beat about the bush, evasive, fabricate, fib, lie, waffle

Antonyms

direct

Scrabble Score: 18

prevaricate: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Word
prevaricate: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
prevaricate: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 21

prevaricate: valid Words With Friends Word