1. 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.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.