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du⋅plic⋅i⋅ty

  [doo-plis-i-tee, dyoo-]
Use duplicity in a Sentence
–noun, plural -ties for 1.
1. deceitfulness in speech or conduct; speaking or acting in two different ways concerning the same matter with intent to deceive; double-dealing.
2. a twofold or double state or quality.
Origin:
1400–50; late ME duplicite < MF < ML, LL duplicitās, with -ite r. -itās; see duplex, -ity

Synonyms:
1. deception, dissimulation. See deceit.

Antonyms:
1. straightforwardness.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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du·plic·i·ty   (dōō-plĭs'ĭ-tē, dyōō-)   
n.   pl. du·plic·i·ties
    1. Deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech.
    2. An instance of deliberate deceptiveness; double-dealing.
  2. The quality or state of being twofold or double.

[Middle English duplicite, from Old French, from Late Latin duplicitās, doubleness, from Latin duplex, duplic-, twofold; see dwo- in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Duplicity

Du*plic"i*ty\, n.; pl. Duplicities. [F. duplicit['e], L. duplicitas, fr. duplex double. See Duplex.]

1. Doubleness; a twofold state. [Archaic]

Do not affect duplicities nor triplicities, nor any certain number of parts in your division of things. --I. Watts.

2. Doubleness of heart or speech; insincerity; a sustained form of deception which consists in entertaining or pretending to entertain one of feelings, and acting as if influenced by another; bad faith.

Far from the duplicity wickedly charged on him, he acted his part with alacrity and resolution. --Burke.

3. (Law) (a) The use of two or more distinct allegations or answers, where one is sufficient. --Blackstone. (b) In indictments, the union of two incompatible offenses. --Wharton.

Syn: Double dealing; dissimulation; deceit; guile; deception; falsehood.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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duplicity 
1433, from M.Fr. duplicite, from L.L. duplicitatem (nom. duplicitas) "doubleness," in M.L. "ambiguity," from duplex (gen. duplicis) "twofold." The notion is of being "double" in one's conduct.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Main Entry: du·plic·i·ty
Pronunciation: dü-'pli-s&-tE, dyü-
Function: noun
Inflected Form: plural -ties
Etymology: Late Latin duplicitat- duplicitas duality, double-dealing, from Latin duplex twofold
1 : the use of deceptive words or actions
2 : the use of more than one claim, allegation, or defense in a single paragraph of a pleading; especially : the improper charging of more than one offense in one count in a charging instrument (as an indictment) —compare MISJOINDER, MULTIPLICITY
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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