equivocate

See also: equivócate

English

Part or all of this entry has been imported from the 1913 edition of Webster’s Dictionary, which is now free of copyright and hence in the public domain. The imported definitions may be significantly out of date, and any more recent senses may be completely missing.
(See the entry for “equivocate”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.)

Alternative forms

• æquivocate (archaic)

Etymology

From (deprecated template usage) [etyl]  aequivocātus, perfect passive participle of aequivocō (“I am called by the same name”), from (deprecated template usage) [etyl]  aequivocus (“ambiguous, equivocal”): compare French équivoquer. See equivocal.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɪˈkwɪvəˌkeɪt/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Verb

1. (intransitive) To use words of equivocal or doubtful signification; to express one's opinions in terms which admit of different senses, with intent to deceive; to use ambiguous expressions with a view to mislead; as, to equivocate is the work of duplicity.
   • 1687, Edward Stillingfleet, The Unreasonableness of Separation: Or, An Impartial Account of the History, Nature and Pleas of the Present Separation from the Communion of the Church of England

     All that Garnet had to say for him was that he supposed he meant to equivocate.

2. To render equivocal or ambiguous.

   He equivocated his vow by a mental reservation. (Can we date this quote by George Buck and provide title, author’s full name, and other details?)

Synonyms

• prevaricate
• evade
• shuffle
• quibble
• dodge
• adumbrate

Translations

to express one's opinions in terms which admit of different senses, with intent to deceive

• Bulgarian: извъртам (bg) (izvǎrtam)
• Finnish: harhauttaa (fi), johtaa harhaan
• Malay: berdolak-dalih
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Swedish: uttrycka sig tvetydigt
• Turkish: kaçamak konuşmak

to render equivocal or ambiguous

• Finnish: saattaa kyseenalaiseksi, kierrellä (fi), väistää (fi), pyöritellä (fi)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}

See also

• prevaricate

Further reading

• Douglas Harper (2001–2024) “equivocate”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.

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Italian

Verb

equivocate

1. second-person plural present indicative of equivocare
2. second-person plural imperative of equivocare
3. feminine plural of equivocato