duplicitous

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UK/djʊˈplɪsɪtəs/US/duːˈplɪsətəs/US/djuːˈplɪsətəs/

adjective

Given to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech.

UncommonScrabble 16

Meanings

adjectiveduplicitous (comparative more duplicitous, superlative most duplicitous)

comparative more duplicitous · superlative most duplicitous

  1. Given to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech.

    “(chuckles) That duplicitous genius. She's betraying me! She's probably already on Plymeria, subjugating its feeble populace. -Quick, to the shuttle.”

    2023 October 12, Edgar Momplaisir, “A Few Badgeys More” (14:06 from the start), in Star Trek: Lower Decks, season 4, episode 7, spoken by AGIMUS (Jeffrey Combs)
    2 more examples

    It reunites the horribly duplicitous skag-addicted non-heroes of the first movie about twentysomethings trying to get off heroin in Edinburgh, and finding that they have nothing very much to put in its place.

    2017 January 19, Peter Bradshaw, “T2 Trainspotting review – choose a sequel that doesn't disappoint”, in The Guardian

    Russia played on those feelings by attacking the French president, Emmanuel Macron[…], saying Moscow still remembered the fate of Napoleon Bonaparte and accusing the French president of duplicitous diplomacy with the Kremlin.

    2023 February 19, Patrick Wintour, “Ukraine war ‘over’ unless EU boosts military support, says top diplomat”, in The Guardian, →ISSN

    Synonyms: deceitful, double-dealing, double-faced, two-faced, Janus-faced · Antonyms: unduplicitous

Synonyms & antonyms

adjectiveGiven to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech.

More synonyms by meaning

adjectivemarked by deliberate deceptiveness especially by pretending one set of feelings and acting under the influence of another

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Englishduplicity
  2. Proto-Indo-European*h₃ed-
  3. Proto-Indo-European*h₃édosder.?
  4. Englishduplicitous

From duplicity + -ous.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Bulgarian двуличен
  • двуличен (dvuličen)given to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
Catalan enganyós
  • enganyósgiven to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
Chinese Cantonese 表裏不一嘅 /表里不一嘅
  • 表裏不一嘅 /表里不一嘅 (biu² leoi³ bat¹ jat¹ ge³)given to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
Danish hyklerisk
  • hykleriskgiven to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
Dutch huichelachtig, dubbelhartig
  • huichelachtiggiven to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
  • dubbelhartiggiven to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
Finnish kaksinaamainen
  • kaksinaamainengiven to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
French fourbe
  • fourbegiven to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
German heuchlerisch
  • heuchlerischgiven to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
Greek δολερός
  • δολερός (dolerós)given to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
Italian disonesto
  • disonestogiven to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
Japanese 偽装の, 二枚舌を使うような
  • 偽装の (gisouno)given to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
  • 二枚舌を使うような (nimaijitawotsukauyouna)given to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
Latin decipiens
  • decipiensgiven to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
Māori tītipa, raureka
  • tītipagiven to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
  • raurekagiven to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
  • tuapekagiven to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
  • whakatuapekagiven to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
  • nanakiagiven to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
Norwegian Bokmål tvetydig, ekvivokk
  • tvetydiggiven to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
  • ekvivokkgiven to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
  • falskgiven to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
  • hykleriskgiven to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
Polish dwulicowy
  • dwulicowygiven to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
Portuguese fraudulento
  • fraudulentogiven to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
Russian двули́чный
  • двули́чный (dvulíčnyj)given to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
Spanish engañoso, dúplice
  • engañosogiven to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
  • dúplicegiven to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
Swedish hycklande
  • hycklandegiven to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech
Cite this entry
APA

duplicitous. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/duplicitous

MLA

“duplicitous.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/duplicitous. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “duplicitous,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/duplicitous.

Source: duplicitous on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.