dissimulate

1 of 2

verb

dis·​sim·​u·​late (ˌ)di-ˈsim-yə-ˌlāt How to pronounce dissimulate (audio)
dissimulated; dissimulating
Synonyms of dissimulate

transitive verb

: to hide under a false appearance
… feels free to indulge the contempt he once had to dissimulate.—Jeffery Henderson

intransitive verb

: dissemble
a politician's ability to dissimulate
dissimulation
(ˌ)di-ˌsim-yə-ˈlā-shən How to pronounce dissimulate (audio)
noun
dissimulator
(ˈ)di-ˈsim-yə-ˌlā-tər How to pronounce dissimulate (audio)
noun

dissimulator

2 of 2

noun

dis·​simulator "+ How to pronounce dissimulator (audio)
: dissembler

Synonyms of dissimulate

Relevance

Verb

See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus

Examples of dissimulate in a Sentence

Verb as an actress she had been trained to dissimulate, so she had no trouble hiding her true feelings offstage as well
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Verb
The result is that Republican politicians dissimulate much more, and of course there is no comparable primary competition. — Tyler Cowen, Twin Cities, 5 July 2019

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English dissimilaten, borrowed from Latin dissimulātus, past participle of dissimulāre "to conceal the identity of, feign," from dis- dis- + simulāre, similāre "to pretend, assume the appearance of by one's conduct, imitate" — more at simulate

Noun

Latin, from dissimulatus + -or

First Known Use

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Time Traveler
The first known use of dissimulate was in the 15th century

Rhymes for dissimulate

See All Rhymes for dissimulate

Browse Nearby Words

dissimilitude
dissimulate
dissimulation
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Dissimulate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dissimulate. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All