different between prevarication vs equivocation

English

Etymology

From Anglo-Norman prevaricassion, Middle French prevarication, and their source, Latin praev?ric?ti? (“collusion with an opponent; transgression; deceit”), from the stem of praev?ricor.

Pronunciation

• (non-merged vowel) IPA^(key): /p???væ???ke???n/
• (merged vowel) IPA^(key): /p???væ???ke???n/
• Rhymes: -e???n

Noun

prevarication (countable and uncountable, plural prevarications)

1. (now rare) Deviation from what is right or correct; transgression, perversion.
2. Evasion of the truth; deceit, evasiveness.

   Prevarication became the order of the day in his government while truth was a stranger in those halls.

   • 1779, William Cowper, Retirement

     The august tribunal of the skies, where no prevarication shall avail.

   • 2012, The Economist, Oct 6th 2012, Charlemagne: Mysterious Mariano

     Mr Rajoy frustrates many with his prevarication over a fresh euro-zone bail-out, which now comes with a conditional promise from the European Central Bank (ECB) to help bring down Spain’s stifling borrowing costs.

3. A secret abuse in the exercise of a public office.
4. (law, historical, Ancient Rome) The collusion of an informer with the defendant, for the purpose of making a sham prosecution.
5. (law) A false or deceitful seeming to undertake a thing for the purpose of defeating or destroying it.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Cowell to this entry?)

Related terms

• prevaricate
• prevaricator

Translations

See also

• lie
• equivocate

Further reading

• Prevarication in the Encyclopædia Britannica (11th edition, 1911)

Middle French

Noun

prevarication f (plural prevarications)

1. prevarication (deviation from what is right)

Descendants

• ? English: prevarication
• French: prévarication

English

Alternative forms

• æquivocation (archaic)

Etymology

c. 1380, from Old French equivocation, from Medieval Latin aequivoc?ti?nem, accusative singular of aequivoc?ti?, from aequivoc?, from Late Latin aequivocus (“ambiguous, equivocal”), from Latin aequus (“equal”) + voc? (“call”);a calque of Ancient Greek ???????? (hom?numía).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /??kw?v??ke???n/, /??kw?v??ke??n?/, /??kw?v??ke??n/
• Hyphenation: e?quiv?o?ca?tion
• Rhymes: -e???n

Noun

equivocation (countable and uncountable, plural equivocations)

1. (logic) A logical fallacy resulting from the use of multiple meanings of a single expression.
2. The use of expressions susceptible of a double signification, possibly intentionally and with the aim of misleading.

Related terms

• amphiboly, evasion, evasiveness, prevarication

Translations

References

Old French

Noun

equivocation f (oblique plural equivocations, nominative singular equivocation, nominative plural equivocations)

1. equivocation

   Si avoit trovee occasion de li gaber par l'equivocation de son nom