deluder
One who misleads
A deluder is someone who deceives or misleads others, causing them to believe something false.
The word carries a sense of intentional misdirection—a deluder isn't merely mistaken but actively fosters illusion: The cult leader was a skilled deluder who convinced followers to give up their savings.
Less commonly, one can be a self-deluder.
One feigning another's identity
- deceiverOne who tricks others
- charlatanFaker claiming false expertise
- tricksterCunning deceiver in myth
- con artistProfessional fraud perpetrator
swindler · hoaxer · faker · pretender · scammer · grifter · mountebank · quack
Cause false belief
- misleadCause false belief
- bamboozleDeceive through cunning
- beguileCharm into deception
- hoodwinkTrick into false belief
dupe · trick · swindle · defraud · con · bluff · misinform · disinform
Deliberate deception for effect
- scamDishonest money-making scheme
- swindleDeception for financial gain
- conArgument against
- ruseDeliberate act of deception
ploy · fraud · deception · trickery · dupery · flimflam · subterfuge · chicanery
Atmospheric optical deception
- fantasyImaginative mental wandering
- chimeraUnrealistic fantasy or hybrid
- figmentImagined thing, unreal
- mythTraditional explanatory tale
fabrication · make-believe · pipe dream · castle in the air · fool's paradise · false hope · hallucination · unreality
impostor
One feigning another's identity
- deceiverOne who tricks others
- charlatanFaker claiming false expertise
- tricksterCunning deceiver in myth
con artist · swindler · hoaxer · faker · pretender · scammer · grifter · mountebank · quack · cheat
deceive
Cause false belief
hoodwink · dupe · trick · swindle · defraud · con · bluff · misinform · disinform · manipulate
hoax
Deliberate deception for effect
ruse · ploy · fraud · deception · trickery · dupery · flimflam · subterfuge · chicanery · stratagem
mirage
Atmospheric optical deception
- fantasyImaginative mental wandering
- chimeraUnrealistic fantasy or hybrid
- figmentImagined thing, unreal
myth · fabrication · make-believe · pipe dream · castle in the air · fool's paradise · false hope · hallucination · unreality · invention
deludertruthteller
One who speaks honestly
truth-teller · straight shooter · honest broker · straight talker · whistleblower
deluderenlightener
One who informs
illuminator · clarifier · revealer · educator · eye-opener