# dissimulate

> English word · Verb · IPA /dɪˈsɪmjʊˌleɪt/

## Definitions
1. To practise deception by concealment or omission, or by feigning a false appearance; to dissemble.
2. To disguise or hide by adopting a false appearance; to dissemble.
3. To connive at; to wink at; to pretend not to notice.

## Etymology
Inherited from Middle English dissimulaten, dissimilaten, from Latin dissimulātus + -en (“verb-forming suffix”), perfect passive participle of dissimulō (“to conceal, to pretend, to neglect”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from dissimilis (“unlike”) + -ō (verb-forming suffix). Compare the obsolete dissimule (“to conceal, disguise”), from Old French dissimuler (French dissimuler), ultimately from the same Latin root. Doublet of dissemble, dissimilate, and dissimule.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/dissimulate