PREVARICATE = (verb)be deliberately ambiguous or unclear in order to mislead or withhold information,get out of telling truth:to
avoid giving a direct and honest answer or opinion, or a clear and
truthful account of a situation, especially by quibbling or being
deliberately ambiguous or misleading

Synonyms:
equivocate, deceive, distort, evade, fabricate, falsify, mislead, stretch, misrepresent, lie

Antonyms:
tell the truth, be honest

Examples:
- Even under oath, George continued to prevaricate about what exactly had happened.
- I knew that when I confronted Lisa she would prevaricate about who started the rumor.
- The lawyer accused George of prevaricating even though he tried hard to look honest and candid.

RATIONALIZE = (verb) 1. to defend or make excuses for something; 2. apply reason or logic to something.
to give the reason for or cause of.to try to find reasons to explain your behaviour, decisions, etc:

Synonyms:
justify, excuse, reason, think, clarify, explain.

Antonyms:
complicate, puzzle, confuse

Examples:
-We rationalized the production system so that one operator could control all three machines.
- The recession is forcing the company to rationalize.
- Lisa didn’t understand how anyone could rationalize such an extravagant purchase.
-You can rationalize your way out of anything.
- Phil tried to rationalize George’s behavior, but it was completely illogical and unjustifiable.