Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun An equivocal word used to deprive a statement of its force or to evade a direct commitment.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun pejorative A word used to qualify a statement so as to make it potentially misleading.
  • verb To use weasel words.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun an equivocal qualification; a word used to avoid making an outright assertion

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[From the weasel's habit of sucking the contents out of an egg without breaking the shell.]

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  • Deliberately misleading or ambiguous elements of language used to avoid making a straightforward statement while simultaneously generating the illusion that a direct, clear form of communication is being utilized. This type of language is used to deceive, distract, or manipulate an audience. (Wikipedia)

    July 26, 2008