Basic Details
Word: Deceitful
Part of Speech: Adjective
Meaning: Dishonest; trying to make people believe things that are not true, usually to get something for yourself.
Synonyms: dishonest, lying, sly, sneaky
Antonyms: honest, truthful, sincere
How to Spell Deceitful
Syllables: de - ceit - ful
Tricky part: After the c comes e and then i (ceit). The ending ful has only one l, even though the meaning is full of deceit.
Watch out for: decietful, deceatful, deceitfull
Memory tip: The old rule works here: i before e except after c. In deceit the c comes first, so the e follows it, then the i.
Usage Examples
Example 1: The deceitful fox in the fable flattered the crow until it dropped its cheese.
Example 2: It was deceitful of him to copy his friend's project and say it was his own.
Example 3: The bank warned customers about deceitful messages asking for their passwords.
Fun Fact
Deceit, deceive and deception all come from the Latin decipere, which meant to catch in a trap or to cheat.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Cookie
Insert the correct pair of letters to form a word:
dec_ _tful
a) a, i
b) e, a
c) i, e
d) e, i
Show answer
d) e, i. The c is followed by e and then i, so the middle reads ceit.
Word Connection
Choose the word opposite in meaning to deceitful as used in the sentence:
The deceitful shopkeeper sold last year's rice in shiny new bags at a higher price.
a) cunning
b) sly
c) dishonest
d) honest
Show answer
d) honest. An honest shopkeeper would never trick buyers; cunning, dishonest and sly all fit the cheat in the sentence.
Word Makeup
Only one of these words can take the suffix -ful to form a real word. Choose it.
ful
a) clever
b) sincere
c) deceit
d) honest
Show answer
c) deceit. Deceit takes ful to give deceitful; honest, clever and sincere are already adjectives and cannot take it.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Someone who is deceitful ____.
a) works very slowly
b) always keeps promises
c) tells lies to get their way
d) speaks too loudly
Show answer
c) tells lies to get their way
2. Which verb belongs to the same word family as deceitful?
a) deceive
b) deceased
c) descend
d) decide
Show answer
a) deceive
