double-talk
Deliberately misleading speech
Double-talk is deliberately evasive or meaningless speech designed to confuse or deceive.
Politicians and corporate spokespeople are often accused of it: The CEO's response was pure double-talk—he never actually answered the question.
Double-talk can also refer to rapid nonsense syllables mixed with real words for comic effect, a style perfected by vaudeville performers.
Unintelligible speech or writing
- gobbledygookPretentious unintelligible language
- mumbo-jumboMeaningless or confusing language
- babbleIncoherent speech
- drivelSenseless, silly talk
blather · balderdash · hogwash · poppycock · twaddle · bunkum · claptrap · malarkey
Wordy governmental language
- legaleseAttorneys' technical jargon
- technobabbleFake scientific-sounding nonsense
- buzzwordsTrendy technical jargon
- corporatespeakEmpty business jargon
doublespeak · officialese · newspeak · gobbledygook · verbiage · cant · argot · acronyms
Ambiguous language avoiding commitment
- prevaricationMisleading speech avoiding directness
- circumlocutionIndirect, wordy expression
- obfuscationDeliberate concealment through confusion
- hedgingNoncommittal maneuvering
sidestepping · dodging · vagueness · indirectness · evasion · fudging · noncommittal · deflection
Cause false belief
- deceitDeliberate misleading of others
- trickeryDeliberate deception or fraud
- manipulationUnderhanded control of others
- insincerityLack of genuine feeling
dishonesty · con · sham · phony · guile · duplicity · fabrication · falsehood
gibberish
Unintelligible speech or writing
- gobbledygookPretentious unintelligible language
- mumbo-jumboMeaningless or confusing language
- babbleIncoherent speech
drivel · blather · balderdash · hogwash · poppycock · twaddle · bunkum · claptrap · malarkey · hooey
bureaucratese
Wordy governmental language
- legaleseAttorneys' technical jargon
- technobabbleFake scientific-sounding nonsense
- buzzwordsTrendy technical jargon
corporatespeak · doublespeak · officialese · newspeak · gobbledygook · verbiage · cant · argot · acronyms · boilerplate
equivocation
Ambiguous language avoiding commitment
- prevaricationMisleading speech avoiding directness
- circumlocutionIndirect, wordy expression
- obfuscationDeliberate concealment through confusion
hedging · sidestepping · dodging · vagueness · indirectness · evasion · fudging · noncommittal · deflection · weaseling
mislead
Cause false belief
- deceitDeliberate misleading of others
- trickeryDeliberate deception or fraud
- manipulationUnderhanded control of others
insincerity · dishonesty · con · sham · phony · guile · duplicity · fabrication · falsehood · hypocrisy
- deceptionlie, lies, lying, fake, fraud
- insincerityinsincerity, phoniness, fakeness, falseness, pretense
- manipulation tacticsgaslighting, guilt trip, guilt-tripping, guilt tripping, emotional blackmail
- invented speechgibberish, gobbledygook, jabberwocky, mumbo jumbo, babble
- runaroundsexcuses, stalling, avoidance, deflection, misdirection
- deceptionslie, lies, lying, deceit, decoy
double-talkstraight talk
Honest, direct communication
plain talk · clarity · directness · plain English · candor
double-talkcandor
Unguarded truthfulness
frankness · honesty · sincerity · truthfulness · forthrightness
double, talkative, doubled, doubling, doubles, doubly, double-cross, redouble, double-dealing