ENGLISH DICTIONARY

Tergiversation

Definition, Meaning & Examples

Pronunciation /tɝd͡ʒɪvɚˈseɪʃən/ · Part of speech noun

Quick meaning: Tergiversation is a noun meaning The act of abandoning something or someone, of changing sides; desertion; betrayal.

Meaning

The act of abandoning something or someone, of changing sides; desertion; betrayal.

More Meanings

  1. The act of evading any clear course of action or speech, of being deliberately ambiguous; equivocation; fickleness.

Example Sentences

They make their outward impudence their mask, as foxes, the better we may not see where they truly tend, nor their true black tergiversation beneath.
Anyone who desires an hour's amusement may be advised to look up the tergiversations of eminent craniologists in their attempts to prove from brain measurements that women are stupider than men.

Word Forms

Synonyms for tergiversation

Depending on context, synonyms include perfidy, prodition, betrayal, double-dealing, perfidiousness, swike.

Related Words

Related dictionary entries include apostasy, equivocation, desertion, destitution, forsaking, decommitment.

Related Dictionary Tools

Sources & Attribution

FreeDictionaryAPI.com / Wiktionary · Original source · CC BY-SA 4.0

Dictionary data is provided by FreeDictionaryAPI.com and sourced from Wiktionary under its stated license.