Deception Tactics

verb to hide or keep something secret

• The spy used a special device to conceal his identity during the mission.
• She tried to conceal her excitement when she saw her favorite band perform live.
• I had to conceal my laughter when he told that corny joke.
• The dark clouds seemed to conceal the sun, casting a shadow over the city.

noun an external form, appearance, or manner of presentation, typically concealing the true nature of something

• The suspect was arrested for impersonating a police officer under the guise of authority.
• She always wears sunglasses as a guise to hide her tired eyes.
• He put on a tough guy guise to impress his friends.
• The politician's promises were just a guise to gain votes.

noun A word that represents a person, place, thing, or idea.

verb A word that expresses an action, occurrence, or state of being.

adverb A word that modifies or describes a verb, adjective, or another adverb.

preposition A word that shows the relationship between a noun or pronoun and other words in a sentence.

conjunction A word that connects words, phrases, or clauses in a sentence.

• The impostor tried to pose as a doctor to gain access to sensitive information.
• She likes to pose as a celebrity when she goes out to fancy restaurants.
• Don't pose as someone you're not just to impress others.
• His confident demeanor can sometimes pose as arrogance to those who don't know him well.

noun a reason given in justification of a course of action that is not the real reason

• He used the pretext of a family emergency to leave work early.
• She made up a pretext about feeling sick to skip the party.
• He always has some wild pretext for not doing his homework.
• The smile on her face was just a pretext to hide her true feelings.

noun a trick or deception

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• The defendant's lawyer employed a clever ruse to sway the jury in his favor.
• She used a ruse to get out of going to the party with her friends.
• He pulled off a sneaky ruse to skip out on doing his chores.
• His charm was just a ruse to hide his true intentions.

noun a mass of dense smoke produced to conceal an area, vessel, or troops from the enemy

• The company used a smoke screen to hide their true financial situation from investors.
• Don't believe everything he says, it's just a smoke screen to distract you.
• She's always putting up a smoke screen to avoid talking about her problems.
• His excuses were just a smoke screen for his lack of effort.

noun a deceit used in order to achieve one's goal

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• The espionage agency used subterfuge to gather classified information.
• She always resorts to subterfuge to get what she wants.
• He's a master at pulling off subterfuge without getting caught.
• The politician's promises were just a subterfuge to win votes.

noun a person, place, thing, or idea

verb a word that expresses an action or state of being

adverb a word that modifies a verb, adjective, or other adverb

pronoun a word that is used instead of a noun to avoid repetition

preposition a word that shows the relationship between a noun or pronoun and other words in a sentence

• The politician tried to throw dust in his opponent's eyes by making false claims during the debate.
• She always tries to throw dust in people's eyes by pretending to know more than she actually does.
• Don't let him throw dust in your eyes with his smooth talk.
• The magician's sleight of hand was so quick, it was like he was throwing dust in our eyes.