Standard Lemma guide

deceit

noun · 7 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • /dɪˈsiːt/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • rhymes with -iːt
  • CMU ARPABET: D AH0 S IY1 T Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
  • CMU ARPABET 2: D IH0 S IY1 T Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

An act or practice intended to deceive; a trick.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Examples

  • The whole conversation was merely a deceit.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: trick, fraud

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

An act of deceiving someone.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: deception, trickery, imposition, hype, deceit, dupery, fiddle, fetch, hocus-pocus, jugglery, legerdemain, list, mislead, prestidigitation, Punic faith, rinky-dink, ruse, sleight of hand, subterfuge, swack

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

The state of being deceitful or deceptive.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: deceptiveness, deceitfulness, dissimulation, fraudulence, trickery, underhandedness

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

The tort or fraudulent representation of a material fact made with knowledge of its falsity, or recklessly, or without reasonable grounds for believing its truth and with intent to induce reliance on it; the plaintiff justifiably relies on the deception, to his injury.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Topics: law

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

the act of deceiving

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: deception, dissembling, dissimulation

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: falsification, misrepresentation

Narrower terms: fakery, indirection, trickery, chicanery, chicane, guile, wile, shenanigan, duplicity, double-dealing, cheat, cheating, delusion, illusion, head game, pretense, pretence, pretending, simulation, feigning, imposture, impersonation, obscurantism, bluff, four flush, take-in

6

noun

Meaning 6

the quality of being fraudulent

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: fraudulence

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: dishonesty

7

noun

Meaning 7

a misleading falsehood

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: misrepresentation, deception

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: falsehood, falsity, untruth

Narrower terms: bill of goods, humbug, snake oil, half-truth, facade, window dressing, exaggeration, overstatement, magnification, snow job, pretense, pretence, feigning, dissembling, subterfuge, blind, trickery, hocus-pocus, slickness, hanky panky, jiggery-pokery, skulduggery, skullduggery, fraudulence, duplicity, evasion, equivocation

History

Etymology

From Middle English deceyte, from Old French deceite, deçoite, from decevoir (“to deceive”), from Latin dēcipere (“to cheat, mislead”).

Across languages

Translations

142 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Albanian: mashtrim — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Arabic: خِدَاع (ḵidāʕ) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Arabic: خَدْع (ḵadʕ) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Armenian: խաբեբայություն (xabebayutʻyun) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Azerbaijani: hiylə — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Azerbaijani: aldatma — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Basque: iruzur — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Belarusian: падма́н (padmán) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Bengali: প্রবঞ্চনা (proboncona) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Bengali: ফাঁকি (phãki) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Bulgarian: изма́ма (izmáma) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Bulgarian: лъжа́ (lǎžá) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Chinese Mandarin: 欺騙 /欺骗 (qīpiàn) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Czech: podvod — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Dutch: bedrog — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Dutch: bedriegerij — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Esperanto: mistifiko — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Estonian: pettus — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Faroese: svik — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Finnish: petosyritys — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Finnish: petoksen yritys — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Finnish: petos — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Finnish: huiputus — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Finnish: huijaus — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Finnish: harhautus — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Finnish: vilppi — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • French: tromperie — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • French: ruse — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Galician: engano — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • German: Betrügerei — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • German: Betrug — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Gothic: 𐌻𐌹𐌿𐍄𐌴𐌹 (liutei) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Greek: απάτη (apáti) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Ancient Greek: ἀπάτη (apátē) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Ancient Greek: δόλωμα (dólōma) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Hebrew: רַמָּאוּת (ramaút) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Hindi: धोखा (dhokhā) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Hindi: छल (chal) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Hungarian: megtévesztés — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Irish: meang — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Italian: falsità — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Italian: mendacità — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Italian: inganno — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Italian: trucco — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Japanese: 詐欺 (sagi) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Kabuverdianu: fantuxada — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Kazakh: алдау (aldau) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Khmer: ការបោកប្រាស់ (kaa baok prah) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Korean: 속임수 (sogimsu) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Korean: 사기 (sagi) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Korean: 속임 (sogim) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Northern Kurdish: hîle — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Northern Kurdish: fêl — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Northern Kurdish: lêhb — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Kyrgyz: алдоо (aldoo) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Latin: fraus — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Latin: dolus — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Latvian: maldināšana — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Lithuanian: apgavystė — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Macedonian: измама (izmama) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Malay: penipuan — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Middle English: ymagynynge — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Odia: ତଞ୍ଚକତା (tañcakatā) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Ossetian: фӕлывд (fælyvd) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Persian: فریب (farib) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Persian: گول (gul) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Polish: oszustwo — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Polish: podstęp — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Portuguese: velhacaria — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Portuguese: fraude — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Romanian: decepție — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Russian: обма́н (obmán) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Sanskrit: कपट (kapaṭa) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Serbo-Croatian: о̏бмана — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Serbo-Croatian: пре̏вара — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Serbo-Croatian: прије̑вара — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Serbo-Croatian: ȍbmana — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Serbo-Croatian: prȅvara — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Serbo-Croatian: prijȇvara — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Slovak: podvod — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Slovene: prevara — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Spanish: bellaquería — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Spanish: fraude — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Spanish: engaño — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Spanish: embeleco — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Spanish: trafa — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Swedish: bedrägeri — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Tajik: фиреб (fireb) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Tatar: алдау (aldaw) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Tatar: алдак (aldaq) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Telugu: దగా (dagā) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Telugu: మోసము (mōsamu) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Thai: การหลอกลวง — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Turkish: hile — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Turkish: aldatma — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Turkish: kandırma — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Turkmen: aldaw — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Ukrainian: обма́н (obmán) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Urdu: دھوکا (dhokhā) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Urdu: فریب (farīb) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Uyghur: ئالداش (aldash) — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Uzbek: aldash — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Uzbek: firib — act or behavior intended to deceive
  • Finnish: huijaus — act or fact of deceiving
  • French: tromperie — act or fact of deceiving
  • German: Täuschung — act or fact of deceiving
  • Greek: απάτη (apáti) — act or fact of deceiving
  • Ancient Greek: ἀπάτη (apátē) — act or fact of deceiving
  • Hindi: छल (chal) — act or fact of deceiving
  • Hindi: छलावा (chalāvā) — act or fact of deceiving
  • Hungarian: megtévesztés — act or fact of deceiving
  • Irish: meang — act or fact of deceiving
  • Korean: 속임수 (sogimsu) — act or fact of deceiving
  • Portuguese: logro — act or fact of deceiving
  • Romanian: înșelătorie — act or fact of deceiving
  • Romanian: înșelăciune — act or fact of deceiving
  • Russian: обма́н (obmán) — act or fact of deceiving
  • Spanish: fraude — act or fact of deceiving
  • Spanish: engaño — act or fact of deceiving
  • Spanish: dolo — act or fact of deceiving
  • Spanish: trafa — act or fact of deceiving
  • Spanish: decebimiento — act or fact of deceiving
  • Swedish: bedrägeri — act or fact of deceiving
  • Telugu: మోసగించుట (mōsagiñcuṭa) — act or fact of deceiving
  • Finnish: vilpillisyys — state of being deceptive
  • German: Falschheit — state of being deceptive
  • Greek: απάτη (apáti) — state of being deceptive
  • Hungarian: megtévesztő — state of being deceptive
  • Japanese: 欺瞞 (giman) — state of being deceptive
  • Kabuverdianu: fantuxada — state of being deceptive
  • Korean: 기만 (giman) — state of being deceptive
  • Russian: обма́нчивость (obmánčivostʹ) — state of being deceptive
  • Russian: лжи́вость (lžívostʹ) — state of being deceptive
  • Swedish: bedräglighet — state of being deceptive
  • Finnish: petos — legal: fraudulent representation of a material fact
  • French: fraude — legal: fraudulent representation of a material fact
  • German: Betrug — legal: fraudulent representation of a material fact
  • Italian: malafede — legal: fraudulent representation of a material fact
  • Romanian: fraudă — legal: fraudulent representation of a material fact
  • Russian: обма́н (obmán) — legal: fraudulent representation of a material fact
  • Spanish: fraude — legal: fraudulent representation of a material fact
  • Spanish: dolo — legal: fraudulent representation of a material fact
Real reading context

deceit in complete knowledge articles

Doyle v Olby (Ironmongers) Ltd Language & communication · Challenging · 3 uses Sarah J. C. Whittlesey Literature & books · Challenging · 2 uses