tergiversation
NounWordNet 3.0
Noun (2)
- falsification by means of vague or ambiguous languageSynonyms: equivocation
- the act of abandoning a party for causeSynonyms: apostasy
Webster's Dictionary (GCIDE)
Tergiversation \Ter`gi*ver*sa"tion\, n. [L. tergiversario: cf. F. tergiversation.]
1.The act of tergiversating; a shifting; shift; subterfuge; evasion. [1913 Webster]
Writing is to be preferred before verbal conferences, as being freer from passions and tergiversations.— Abp. Bramhall.[1913 Webster]
2.Fickleness of conduct; inconstancy; change. [1913 Webster]
The colonel, after all his tergiversations, lost his life in the king's service.— Clarendon.[1913 Webster]