prevaricate
prih-VAIR-ih-kaytverbMeaning to dodge the truth, often by speaking in a misleading way
Memory hook the CAT VARIES the story. Caught beside the broken vase, the cat varies its story every minute: first the wind did it, then the dog. That cat loves to prevaricate.
When the teacher asked about the missing homework, Jonah began to prevaricate, spinning a long tale about a windstorm.
In context The witness did not tell an outright lie, but she prevaricated, giving answers so slippery that the jury could not tell what she had really seen.
Similar dodge, hedge, waffle, lie
Opposite level with, come clean
From Latin praevaricari, “to walk crookedly, to straddle,” and so to play false.