Ruse

Quick meaning: Ruse is a noun meaning (countable, often hunting, archaic, rare) A turning or doubling back, especially of animals to get out of the way of hunting dogs.

Meaning

(countable, often hunting, archaic, rare) A turning or doubling back, especially of animals to get out of the way of hunting dogs.

More Meanings

1. (countable, by extension) An action intended to deceive; a trick.
2. (uncountable) Cunning, guile, trickery.
3. (intransitive) To deceive or trick using a ruse.
4. (intransitive, hunting, archaic, rare) Of an animal: to turn or double back to elude hunters or their hunting dogs.

Example Sentences

Near-synonyms: ploy, stratagem

Soon, however, Courvoisier forced matters, when, despairing of ever catching the wily outlaw leader by fair means, he resorted to the ruse of carrying off Friar Tuck of Copmanhurst and holding him as a hostage.

I have that strong impression on my mind that a person who is guilty of a ruse will hesitate at no falsehood. If it was a ruse, and if it was a deceit, you are to judge whether that elevates the persons in your mind who are parties to that trick.

The terminological distinction between reproductive and therapeutic cloning is a semantic ruse, as every instance of human cloning is a true reproducive act. That is to say, the intended purpose of this research is to produce a new human being with human embryonic stem cells.

Word Forms

• ruses
• rusing
• rused

Synonyms for ruse

Depending on context, synonyms include ploy, stratagem, artifice.

Related Words

Related dictionary entries include artifice, device, dodge, sleight, cunning, gimmick.

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