prevaricate

While Mr. Rees is keen to dispel the myths ginned up by imperial writers, he doesn’t prevaricate when the evidence shows that their fears may not have been entirely unfounded.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2025

That suggests Sir Keir won't prevaricate in offering his own judgement about Sir Laurie Magnus's findings once he himself has them.

From BBC ● Sep. 5, 2025

So, why did the three college presidents prevaricate when asked how they would respond to such language?

From Seattle Times ● Dec. 14, 2023

You can equivocate, or dissemble, or palter, or mislead, or prevaricate, or fib, or perjure.

From Washington Post ● May 3, 2021

Never prevaricate to your lawyer; tell him everything right out.

From The Red Symbol by John Ironside

"Yes. Mm-hmm. Yes. We just need to respect our viewership," he prevaricates.

From Salon ● May 15, 2023

It leaves Wickremesinghe nominally in charge but on an acting basis, as Gotabaya prevaricates over formally rescinding his role.

From Reuters ● Jul. 13, 2022

"Oh, you can't sum up Tom Jones in four words, you just can't," he prevaricates.

From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2019

And in doing so, she congenitally lies and prevaricates — and gets caught in those lies and prevarications,” Mr. Klein says.

From Washington Times ● Oct. 21, 2015

She secretes, prevaricates, quibbles, lays petty traps and mouses all day long.

From Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great - Volume 13 Little Journeys to the Homes of Great Lovers by Elbert Hubbard

“This is not about separating what we built together,” prevaricated Comcast co-CEO Brian Roberts, explaining a deal that’s all about separating what was previously put together.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 2026

Ramaphosa acted decisively against COVID-19 in 2020 - imposing some of the world's toughest restrictions and expanding social welfare to prevent hunger - but has prevaricated on other contentious policy issues.

From Reuters ● Aug. 5, 2022

In the early stages of the conflict, the company prevaricated, choosing to remain in Russia while other international brands were leaving.

From BBC ● May 16, 2022

They prevaricated, assuring the public there was nothing to worry about.

From New York Times ● Oct. 1, 2021

So I prevaricated mildly, and said that I certainly did not feel inclined to throw a hundred or even seventy-five pounds away over a story without some certainty of success.

From My First Book: the experiences of Walter Besant, James Payn, W. Clark Russell, Grant Allen, Hall Caine, George R. Sims, Rudyard Kipling, A. Conan Doyle, M.E. Braddon, F.W. Robinson, H. Rider Haggard, R.M. Ballantyne, I. Zangwill, Morley Roberts, David Christie Murray, Marie Corelli, Jerome K. Jerome, John Strange Winter, Bret Harte, "Q.", Robert Buchanan, Robert Louis Stevenson, with an introduction by Jerome K. Jerome. by Various

Following years of prevaricating, Germany pledged to quit nuclear power definitively after Japan's 2011 Fukushima disaster sent radiation spewing into the air and terrifying the world.

From Reuters ● Apr. 14, 2023

In short, the agency put forth a rule that addresses the problem head-on without prevaricating or kowtowing to corporate America.

From Slate ● Jan. 10, 2023

In some ways, it’s the opposite of Hamlet, who is prevaricating and trying to figure out what he should do.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 11, 2022

His belligerent, bleating, entitled, prevaricating, smart-ass Jock Culture posturing reminded me of the boys I had been trying to dodge all my life and, in the end, couldn’t help writing about.

From Salon ● Oct. 23, 2018

No: and here, at last, after so many years' litigation, he is called to account for his prevaricating, false accounts in Calcutta, and cannot give them to you.

From The Works of the Right Honourable Edmund Burke, Vol. 10 (of 12) by Edmund Burke