dissimulation
nounEtymology Inherited from Middle English dissimulacioun, from Old French dissimulation, from Latin dissimulātiō; equivalent to dissimule + -ation.
1
The act of concealing the truth; hypocrisy or deception.
- Perhaps it was best to tell Ethel at once: if ever she went into society at all, she would inevitably hear of it, and her own concealment would have the appearance of a dissimulation,—the furthest from her thoughts.1837, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], “Changes in London”, in Ethel Churchill: Or, The Two Brides. […], volume II, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, page 233:
2
Hiding one's feelings or intentions.