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"deceive" is also used as a crossword clue. If that's what you saw, the answer is often con (3 letters).
Definitions
cause someone to believe an untruth
Word origin
From Middle English deceyven, from Anglo-Norman deceivre, from Latin dēcipiō (“to deceive; beguile; entrap”), from dē- (“from”) + capiō (“to seize”); see captive. Compare conceive, perceive, receive. Displaced native Old English beswīcan.
Used in a sentence
“It feels painful to begin seeing clearly, that you’ve been deceived by the very people and institutions you trusted to guide you.”
“I know—for Death, who comes for me From regions of the blest afar, Where there is nothing to deceive, Hath left his iron gate ajar, […]”
Source: Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0
Used as a crossword answer1 curated clues
01“Mislead deliberately”7 letters
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