Deceptive and Unreliable

Deceptive

Deceptive adjective - Tending or having power to deceive.

Unreliable is a synonym for deceptive in characteristic topic. In some cases you can use "Unreliable" instead an adjective "Deceptive", when it comes to topics like dishonest, misleading.

Nearby Words: deceive, deception, deceit, deceptively

Unreliable

Unreliable adjective - Not worthy of reliance or trust.

Deceptive is a synonym for unreliable in characteristic topic. You can use "Deceptive" instead an adjective "Unreliable", if it concerns topics such as not true.

Nearby Words: unreliability, unreliably

Both words in one sentence

  • Series / My So-Called Life Unreliable Narrator: The narrator (in most episodes, Angela) is seldom willfully deceptive — just selectively oblivious.
  • Nothing is what it seems, looks are deceptive and allies are unreliable.
  • Literature / The Turn of the Screw Lying Creator: James stated that the novel is a straightforward ghost story and not an example of Unreliable Narrator, but many critics argue that James was being intentionally deceptive when he made such statements.
Cite this Source
Unreliable and Deceptive. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 21, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/deceptive/unreliable
Deceptive & Unreliable. N.p., 2016. Web. 21 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/deceptive/unreliable>.
Unreliable or Deceptive. 2016. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/deceptive/unreliable.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "deceptive" and "unreliable" have occurred on timeline