1
as in to pretend
to present a false appearance of
he dissembled happiness at the news that his old girlfriend was getting married—to someone else
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2
as in to dissimulate
to take on a false or deceptive appearance
children learn to dissemble at a surprisingly early age
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of dissemble
You’d like your government to tell you the truth, and the government dissembled repeatedly after the raid about what the rules of engagement were.
—
Aryeh Neier, The New York Review of Books, 3 Mar. 2025
Pushing back on reporters, at the time Scher often dissembled and appeared to brush aside concerns about what was clearly an increasingly out-of-control situation.
—Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 19 July 2024
That same week, Altman made headlines at a Senate hearing by asking to be regulated — wowing senators who were more accustomed to tech CEOs dissembling or responding evasively to questions.
—Brian Fung, CNN, 14 Feb. 2024
That year, with 23,000 U.S. troops in Vietnam, the administration was still dissembling about the American role in the war.
—Trip Gabriel, New York Times, 2 Feb. 2024
See All Example Sentences for dissemble
Aryeh Neier, The New York Review of Books, 3 Mar. 2025
Pushing back on reporters, at the time Scher often dissembled and appeared to brush aside concerns about what was clearly an increasingly out-of-control situation.
—Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 19 July 2024
That same week, Altman made headlines at a Senate hearing by asking to be regulated — wowing senators who were more accustomed to tech CEOs dissembling or responding evasively to questions.
—Brian Fung, CNN, 14 Feb. 2024
That year, with 23,000 U.S. troops in Vietnam, the administration was still dissembling about the American role in the war.
—Trip Gabriel, New York Times, 2 Feb. 2024
See All Example Sentences for dissemble
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dissemble
Verb
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The challenge is to stop pretending the current tools give full control and start demanding real visibility.—
Jagadeesh Kunda,
Forbes.com,
9 Sep. 2025
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Kelley susses out that Göring is pretending not to understand or speak English, and for a couple of scenes that gives the shrink a leg up.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
8 Sep. 2025
Verb
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That’s assuming no more Fed officials are fired, which could change the trajectory of monetary policy for the next few years.—
Yeo Boon Ping,
CNBC,
10 Sep. 2025
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A lot of people assume that individuals make conscious decisions that lead to these outcomes.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
10 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The paper also highlights the potential of digital twins — virtual patient replicas that allow doctors to simulate treatments before applying them in real life.—
Matthew Kayser,
USA Today,
12 Sep. 2025
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Today’s use cases are limited, with most work concentrated on simulating chemistry and physics.—
Trefis Team,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Dissemble.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dissemble. Accessed 14 Sep. 2025.
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