double-hearted
Definition
- Adjective:
- Deceitful or treacherous: "double-hearted" describes a person who is not sincere or loyal, often appearing friendly while harboring ill intentions. It implies duplicity or having two conflicting loyalties.
Usage Examples
- (She is deceitful, pretending to be friendly while acting treacherously.)
- (The politician was disloyal and deceptive in their actions.)
Advanced Usage
- "to be double-hearted towards someone": to act with hidden malice or disloyalty toward another person.
- He was double-hearted towards his friend, offering help while plotting to take his job. (He was treacherous in his dealings.)
Variants and Related Words
- Double-heartedness (n): the quality or state of being deceitful or disloyal.
- Her double-heartedness was exposed when both sides of her betrayal came to light. (Her treachery was revealed.)
Synonyms
- Deceitful: behaving in a way that hides the truth or tricks others.
- Treacherous: guilty of betrayal or disloyalty.
- Duplicitous: having two sides or meanings, especially in a deceptive way.
Related Idioms
Two-faced: having two faces; acting hypocritically or deceptively.
- He is a two-faced person, saying one thing to my face and another behind my back. (He is deceitful.)
A snake in the grass: a hidden enemy or treacherous person.
- She seemed kind, but she was a snake in the grass, spreading rumors about me. (She was secretly treacherous.)