palter means to talk insincerely; to prevaricate or equivocate in speech or actions. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 86 out of 100.
palter is pronounced /ˈpɒltə/.
Why “palter” is a great word
PALTER — [Verb] To act or speak insincerely or deceitfully, often by equivocating or using true but misleading statements. Its origin is unknown; first attested in the 1530s in the sense 'to speak indistinctly.' The form suggests a frequentative, but no base verb is known. Later associated by some with Middle English *palter ('rag, trifle') and Middle Low German palter ('rag, cloth'), linking it to the adjective 'paltry.' Unlike equivocate, which constructs a deliberate fog of ambiguity, or prevaricate, which suggests a more direct dodge, to palter is to haggle with the truth itself, using it as a cheap bargaining chip. It is the politician’s artful recitation of a favorable half-statistic, the merchant’s thumb on the scale, the lover’s devastatingly incomplete explanation—a petty corruption that makes the very currency of words feel debased.
verb
- To talk insincerely; to prevaricate or equivocate in speech or actions.“Romans, that have spoke the word,
And will not palter.”
- To talk insincerely; to prevaricate or equivocate in speech or actions.; To give a false impression by selective use of true but misleading statements.
- To trifle.“Palter out your time in the penal statutes.”
- To haggle.“Herceler. Voyez to haggle, to dodge. N.b. Cotgrave defines herceler/harceler by example: "to haggle, hucke, hedge, or paulter long in the buying of commodity".”
- To babble; to chatter.