play false vs deceive

play false and deceive both are verbs.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
play false	No	No	Yes	No
deceive	No	No	Yes	No

As verbs, deceive is a hypernym of play false; that is, deceive is a word with a broader meaning than play false:

play false: conceal one's true motives from especially by elaborately feigning good intentions so as to gain an end
deceive: cause someone to believe an untruth

Other hypernyms of play false include betray, lead astray.

play false (verb)	deceive (verb)
conceal one's true motives from especially by elaborately feigning good intentions so as to gain an end	cause someone to believe an untruth
	be false to; be dishonest with