tergiversation
Definition from Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Contents |
[edit] English
[edit] Etymology
From Latin tergiversari.
[edit] Pronunciation
- IPA: /tɜːʤɪvəˈseɪʃən/
[edit] Noun
tergiversation (plural tergiversations)
- The act of turning one's back; abandoning something or someone; betrayal.
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- 1985: 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. — John Fowles, A Maggot
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- The act of turning from a clear course of action; equivocation; fickleness.
[edit] Related terms
[edit] Anagrams
[edit] French
[edit] Pronunciation
[edit] Etymology
From tergiverser and -ation, ultimately from Latin.
[edit] Noun
tergiversation f. (plural tergiversations)
- Delays in providing a clear answer caused by hesitations or an outright unwillingness to be forthright.
[edit] Usage notes
- Usage as a pluralia tantum rather than as a mass noun is more common.
