prevaricate

About 0.04 uses per million words.

Meaning

1. verb To deviate, transgress; to go astray (from).
2. verb To speak or act in a manner that is intentionally ambiguous or evasive; equivocate.

   The people saw the politician prevaricate every day.

3. verb To collude, as where an informer colludes with the defendant, and makes a sham prosecution.
4. verb To undertake something falsely and deceitfully, with the purpose of defeating or destroying it.

Similar words

tergiversate palter equivocate usurp lie aberrate warp deviate deflect stray

Often followed by

and in with or about on the over to

Word family

prevaricated prevaricates prevaricating prevarication prevarications prevaricator prevaricators