You searched for: “prevaricate
prevaricate (pri VAR i kayt") (verb), prevaricates; prevaricated; prevaricating
1. To be deliberately ambiguous or unclear in order to mislead or to withhold information: The local officials prevaricated about the real costs of the new city hall.
2. To avoid giving a direct and honest answer or opinion, or a clear and truthful account of a situation, especially by quibbling or being deliberately ambiguous or misleading: When anyone prevaricates, he or she is avoiding telling the truth or is not providing the real facts.
3. To stray from or to evade the truth; to equivocate: As a witness under oath, Bert didn't prevaricate but he answered all of the questions honestly.
4. Etymology: from Latin prevaricate, "to walk crookedly" from varus, "knock-kneed"; from this the verb varicare, "straddle" was combined with the prefix prae-, "before, beyond" which produced praevaricari, "to walk crookedly" or "to deviate from straightforward behavior" and "to turn away from the truth".
To stray or to deviate from the truth and so to lie.
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This entry is located in the following units: -ate (to do) (page 5) -cate (page 6) pre-, prae- (page 19) vari- (page 1)
Word Entries at Get Words: “prevaricate
prevaricate (pri VAR i kayt")
This cate provides information about the process of intentionally avoid telling the truth or to lie.
This entry is located in the following unit: cate family of verbs (page 4)
To avoid giving a direct and honest answer or statement; to lie. (2)