evasive

/ɪˈveɪsɪv/

/ɪˈveɪsɪv/

To be evasive is to avoid something, whether it's a touchy subject or the person who's "it" in a game of tag.

If you're dodging the truth and not giving straight answers, then you're being evasive. Which is probably not the best strategy when the police are asking the questions. From the French évasif, it’s an adjective that describes someone who's being intentionally shifty or vague. But a concept that’s hard to pin down or comprehend can also be considered evasive.

Definitions of evasive

1. adjective

   avoiding or escaping from difficulty or danger especially enemy fire
   “pilots are taught to take evasive action”

   synonyms:

   protective

   intended or adapted to afford protection of some kind
2. adjective

   deliberately vague or ambiguous
   “his answers were brief, constrained and evasive”

   “an evasive statement”

   synonyms:

   ambiguous, equivocal

   open to two or more interpretations; or of uncertain nature or significance; or (often) intended to mislead