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Pretend

noun/pɹɪtˈɛnd/
Definition
the enactment of a pretense
make believe with the intent to deceive
Pronunciation
🇺🇸American English
/pɹɪtˈɛnd/
🇬🇧British English
/pɹɪtˈɛnd/
🇮🇳Indian English
/pɹɪtˈɛnd/
2 syllables Say it as /pɹɪtˈɛnd/.
Examples
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms
Parts of Speech
nounthe enactment of a pretense
“it was just pretend”
verbmake believe with the intent to deceive
“He feigned that he was ill”
verbbehave unnaturally or affectedly
“She's just acting”
verbput forward a claim and assert right or possession of
“pretend the title of King”
verbput forward, of a guess, in spite of possible refutation
“I am guessing that the price of real estate will rise again”
verbrepresent fictitiously, as in a play, or pretend to be or act like
“She makes like an actress”
verbstate insincerely
“He professed innocence but later admitted his guilt”
adjectiveimagined as in a play
“the make-believe world of theater”
Word Forms
make-believeadjectiveimagined as in a play
make believeverbrepresent fictitiously, as in a play, or pretend to be or act like
pretendverbrepresent fictitiously, as in a play, or pretend to be or act like
feigningnounpretending with intention to deceive
shamnounsomething that is a counterfeit; not what it seems to be
shammernounsomeone shirking their duty by feigning illness or incapacity
pretendernouna person who makes deceitful pretenses
pretensenounpretending with intention to deceive
pretendingnounthe act of giving a false appearance
dissemblernouna person who professes beliefs and opinions that he or she does not hold in order to conceal his or her real feelings or motives
dissemblingnounpretending with intention to deceive
actnouna manifestation of insincerity
Pretendernouna claimant to the throne or to the office of ruler (usually without just title)
pretensionnounthe advancing of a claim
guessnounan estimate based on little or no information
guessernouna person who guesses
guessingnounan estimate based on little or no information
hazardnounan unknown and unpredictable phenomenon that causes an event to result one way rather than another
pretendnounthe enactment of a pretense
make-believenounthe enactment of a pretense
Around the World
Europe
🇩🇪German
vorgeben
die Durchführung eines Vorwandes
🇫🇷French
prétendre
la mise en scène d'un faux-semblant
🇪🇸Spanish
pretender
la puesta en práctica de una pretensión
🇮🇹Italian
fare finta
la messa in atto di una finzione
🇳🇱Dutch
doen alsof
het in praktijk brengen van een voorwendsel
🇵🇹Portuguese
fingir
a promulgação de um fingimento
🇷🇺Russian
притворяться
притворство
India
🇮🇳Hindi
बहाना करना
एक दिखावा का अधिनियमन
🇧🇩Bengali
ভান
একটি ভান আইনীকরণ
🇮🇳Tamil
பாசாங்கு
ஒரு பாசாங்கு இயற்றுதல்
🇮🇳Telugu
నటిస్తారు
ఒక నెపం యొక్క అమలు
🇮🇳Marathi
ढोंग करणे
एक ढोंग कायदा
🇮🇳Gujarati
ઢોંગ
એક ઢોંગ અમલ
🇮🇳Kannada
ನಟಿಸುತ್ತಾರೆ
ಒಂದು ನೆಪವನ್ನು ಜಾರಿಗೊಳಿಸುವುದು
🇮🇳Malayalam
നടിക്കുക
ഒരു ഭാവനയുടെ നിയമനം
🇮🇳Punjabi
ਦਿਖਾਵਾ
ਇੱਕ ਦਿਖਾਵਾ ਦਾ ਕਾਨੂੰਨ
🇵🇰Urdu
دکھاوا
ایک دکھاوا کا نفاذ
East & Southeast Asia
🇨🇳Chinese
假装
假装的实施
🇯🇵Japanese
演じる
見せかけの制定
🇰🇷Korean
~인 척하다
가식의 제정
🇻🇳Vietnamese
giả vờ
việc thực hiện một sự giả vờ
🇹🇭Thai
แกล้งทำ
การประกาศใช้ข้ออ้าง
🇮🇩Indonesian
berpura-pura
berlakunya suatu kepura-puraan
🇵🇭Filipino
magpanggap
ang pagsasabatas ng isang pagkukunwari
🇲🇾Malay
berpura-pura
penggubalan pura-pura
Middle East
🇸🇦Arabic
يدّعي
تشريع التظاهر
🇮🇷Persian
تظاهر کن
اجرای یک تظاهر
🇹🇷Turkish
numara yapmak
bir iddianın yürürlüğe girmesi
🇮🇱Hebrew
לְהַעֲמִיד פָּנִים
חקיקת העמדת פנים
Test Yourself1 / 3
What is the primary definition of the word 'pretend'?
The primary meaning of 'pretend' is 'the enactment of a pretense'.
Which of the following sentences uses the word 'pretend' in a grammatically correct way?
Using 'pretend' in a noun/adjective form makes the first sentence correct.
In which domain is the word 'pretend' most likely to appear as standard vocabulary?
'pretend' is a standard word used primarily in general literature and formal communications.
Community Poll1 / 6
How often do you encounter the word 'pretend' in your daily reading?
Very Often
Occasionally
Rarely
Never
Do you find 'pretend' easy to spell?
Yes, very easy
Somewhat easy
A bit confusing
Extremely hard
In your opinion, does the word 'pretend' have a positive, neutral, or gloomy tone?
Positive
Neutral
Gloomy
Vibrant
Which age group is most likely to use 'pretend' in regular conversations?
Kids (3-12)
Teens (13-19)
Adults (20-60)
Seniors (60+)
How likely are you to use 'pretend' in a professional email?
Very likely
Somewhat likely
Not very likely
Never
Would you classify 'pretend' as formal, casual, or slang?
Formal
Casual
Slang
Archaic
Pick an option to see how others voted
This word is also in the Advanced book — want the full, immersive treatment (age meanings, culture, creative use, deeper Hindi & exercises)? Open the Advanced entry →