SYNONYMS AND RELATED EXPRESSIONS
subterfuge
noun
A deceptive device used to conceal a purpose or evade a difficulty.
Local English device voice, when available. This is not a recorded dictionary pronunciation.
Deceptive device
Closest synonyms
Related words and expressions
These extend or explain the idea and may require a different sentence structure.
Usage distinction
Return to topSubterfuge conceals a purpose or evades a difficulty. A stratagem can be clever without being deceptive; a pretext is specifically a false stated reason.
CHECK THE MEANING IN CONTEXT
See subterfuge in use
The disguised invitation was a subterfuge to bring the rivals together.
Felix then discovered a subterfuge: the speaker had labeled the removal of unfavorable comments as a routine formatting correction.
Compare an alternative with the original word in each passage. Shared meanings do not make every pair interchangeable.
Synonym reference scope and sources
The groups distinguish the senses selected for this study entry. Closest synonyms and broader related expressions have separate labels. The listed sources support lexical selection; not every phrase is a direct quotation from a source.
How the synonym reference was prepared / WordNet 3.0 license