tergiversate
UK /ˈtɜːd͡ʒɪvəseɪt/ · US /tɝˈd͡ʒɪvɝseɪt/ verb
Forms tergiversates tergiversating tergiversated
- verb (intransitive) To evade, to equivocate using subterfuge; to obfuscate in a deliberate manner.
- verb (intransitive) To change sides or affiliation; to apostatize.
- verb (intransitive, rare) To flee by turning one's back.
Synonyms
prevaricate beat around the bush desert equivocate palter apostatize apostatise
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin tergiversātus, perfect active participle of tergiversor (“to evade, to avoid, to turn one's back on”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from tergum (“back, hind”) + versor (“to turn”). Compare French tergiverser.
Webster’s 1913
Etymology [L. tergiversatus, p.p. of tergiversari to turn one's back, to shift; tergum back + versare, freq. of vertere to turn. See Verse.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “tergiversate”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details