smokescreen
Ruse hiding intentions
A smokescreen is a cloud of smoke released to conceal military movements or positions.
The figurative sense dominates: anything used to obscure, distract, or hide the truth.
The merger talks were just a smokescreen for the real agenda.
Politicians deploy smokescreens to deflect attention from scandals or uncomfortable questions.
Protect by overlaying
- veilFabric that obscures
- shroudBurial cloth or covering
- cloakSleeveless outer wrap
- maskFace-worn concealment
camouflage · disguise · obscure · hide · shield · curtain · cloud · mantle
Deliberate deception to conceal
- ruseDeliberate act of deception
- ployCalculated deceptive tactic
- feintDeceptive mock attack
- bluffCalculated false front
charade · sham · pretense · decoy · masquerade · artifice · guile · duplicity
Protect by overlaying
- protectionGuarding against harm
- shieldHandheld defensive armor
- barrierObstruction preventing passage
- guardWatchful defensive attention
security · safeguard · diversion · escape · retreat · withdrawal · evasive action
Ambiguous language avoiding commitment
- prevaricationMisleading speech avoiding directness
- double-talkPurposely ambiguous language
- jargonSpecialized professional vocabulary
- vaguenessAbsence of precision
ambiguity · gibberish · spin · deflection · evasion · doublespeak · bureaucratese · muddying
cover
Protect by overlaying
mask · camouflage · disguise · obscure · hide · shield · curtain · cloud · mantle · haze
subterfuge
Deliberate deception to conceal
bluff · charade · sham · pretense · decoy · masquerade · artifice · guile · duplicity · trickery
cover
Protect by overlaying
- protectionGuarding against harm
- shieldHandheld defensive armor
- barrierObstruction preventing passage
guard · security · safeguard · diversion · escape · retreat · withdrawal · evasive action
equivocation
Ambiguous language avoiding commitment
- prevaricationMisleading speech avoiding directness
- double-talkPurposely ambiguous language
- jargonSpecialized professional vocabulary
vagueness · ambiguity · gibberish · spin · deflection · evasion · doublespeak · bureaucratese · muddying · stonewalling
chaff
Protective seed coverings
- flaresPyrotechnic distress signals
- countermeasuresDefensive actions against threats
- jammingBlocking or wedging forcefully
decoy · barrage · evasion · tactics · stealth · dispenser · radar · infrared · electronic warfare · cloaking
- red herringsdecoy, misdirection, wild goose chase, false trail, dead end
- concealmentconceal, hiding, concealing, concealed, hide
- tacticsmaneuver, counter-attack, gambit, ambush, counterstrike
- covert tacticssubterfuge, decoy, feint, diversion, misdirection
- media spinspin doctor, media spin, talking points, framing, reframing
- obstructionobstruction, delay, roadblock, blockade, barricade
smokescreentransparency
State of being see-through
clarity · clear view · openness · visibility · lucidity
smokescreencandor
Unguarded truthfulness
honesty · truthfulness · forthrightness · straight talk · directness
smokescreenrevelation
Surprising disclosed truth
disclosure · unveiling · exposé · unmasking · laying bare