Word family noun deceit deceiver deception adjective deceitful deceptive verb deceive adverb deceptively
From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishdeceptivede‧cep‧tive /dɪˈseptɪv/ adjective 1 SEEMsomething that is deceptive seems to be one thing but is in fact very different Some snakes move with deceptive speed (=move faster than you think or expect). Gwen’s students may look angelic, but appearances can be deceptive.2 TRICK/DECEIVEintended to make someone believe something that is not true misleading and deceptive adverts deceptive practices —deceptively adverbExamples from the Corpus
deceptive• But the shimmering white minaret, and the impressive dome, designed to shelter 3,500 worshippers, are deceptive.• But these figures are highly deceptive.• High slack systems, then, are often hotbed of deceptive activities that cover up the exercise of power for personal gain.• Federal organizations have been monitoring the Internet for deceptive advertisements, consumer fraud, and other unlawful activities.• Housing estates lie below the canal on both sides although there is a deceptive amount of greenery about.• Why do self-oriented intents and deceptive behaviors persist in organizations?• I know appearances can be deceptive, but Jeffrey didn't seem like a wife-beater.• Such was their initiation to the deceptive intrigues of early twentieth-century geopolitics.• The sea here is very deceptive -- it looks calm but is in fact very dangerous.• There is a deceptive simplicity to Irving Berlin's songs.appearances can be deceptive• First appearances can be deceptive because our preferences work on over-all attractiveness not on a check-list of priorities.• Appearances can be deceptive - dangerously deceptive. 