equivocation

noun

Etymology: c. 1380, from Middle English equivocacion, from Old French equivocation, from Medieval Latin aequivocātiō, from aequivocō, from Late Latin aequivocus (“ambiguous, equivocal”), from Latin aequus (“equal”) + vocō (“call”); a calque of Ancient Greek ὁμωνυμία (homōnumía).

1. A logical fallacy resulting from the use of multiple meanings of a single expression.
2. The use of expressions susceptible of a double signification, possibly intentionally and with the aim of misleading.

   “Federal courts have mostly ruled against the executive branch in such cases. The equivocation that has characterized the [Trump] administration’s legal responses to date is turning into objection and refusal.”