counterfeit
Americanadjective
noun
-
counterfeits
plural
-
an imitation intended to be passed off fraudulently or deceptively as genuine; forgery.
- Synonyms:
- sham, falsification
-
Archaic. a copy.
-
Archaic. a close likeness; portrait.
-
Obsolete. impostor; pretender.
verb (used with object)
-
counterfeits,
present (3rd person singular)
-
counterfeited,
past participle, past
-
counterfeiting
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
counterfeits,
present (3rd person singular)
-
counterfeited,
past participle, past
-
counterfeiting
present participle
-
to make counterfeits, as of money.
-
to feign; dissemble.
adjective
-
made in imitation of something genuine with the intent to deceive or defraud; forged
-
simulated; sham
counterfeit affection
noun
-
an imitation designed to deceive or defraud
-
archaic an impostor; cheat
verb
-
(tr) to make a fraudulent imitation of
-
(intr) to make counterfeits
-
to feign; simulate
-
(tr) to imitate; copy
Synonym Usage
See false.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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counterfeiternoun
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counterfeitnessnoun
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noncounterfeitadjective
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uncounterfeitedadjective
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counterfeitlyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
counterfeitsimple
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counterfeitssimple
-
have counterfeitedperfect
-
has counterfeitedperfect
-
am counterfeitingprogressive
-
are counterfeitingprogressive
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is counterfeitingprogressive
-
have been counterfeitingperfect progressive
-
has been counterfeitingperfect progressive
Past
-
counterfeitedsimple
-
had counterfeitedperfect
-
was counterfeitingprogressive
-
were counterfeitingprogressive
-
had been counterfeitingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of counterfeit
First recorded in 1250–1300; (adjective) Middle English countrefet “false, forged,” from Anglo-French cuntrefet, Old French contrefait, contrefet, past participle of contrefaire, contrefere “to copy, imitate,” equivalent to conter- counter- + fere “to make, do,” ultimately from Latin facere ( see fact); (verb) Middle English countrefeten, verbal derivative of countrefet
Explanation
A counterfeit is a fake or a forgery. If you painted an uncanny copy of the "Mona Lisa" and tried to pass it off as the original, you'd have a counterfeit on your hands. An exact imitation of anything — a work of art, a ten dollar bill — is a counterfeit, and the act of creating the fake copy is the verb to counterfeit. You can also describe the forgery using the adjective form of counterfeit: a counterfeit Rolex watch. In Old French, the word contre, "counter or against", together with the word faire, "to make," joined together to mean "to make in imitation," which led to our counterfeit.
Vocabulary lists containing counterfeit
Against All Odds: Contra and Counter
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Fake It 'Til You Make It: Synonyms for "False"
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The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Enright says counterfeit devices are a bigger problem outside of the U.S., and that the scheme is typically to make a quick buck off the initial sale, not to hack the buyer.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 23, 2026
Vinted said there had been "fraudulent activity, such as selling counterfeit items".
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026
Entertainment groups representing big-ticket artists like BTS are suing the sellers of counterfeit merchandise ranging from an Ozzy Osbourne Christmas elf to $30 Lady Gaga candles.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
The UK government said more than 260,000 counterfeit toys were intercepted by UK Border Force in the last year alone.
From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026
Our great event for counterfeit Easter Sunday was a pageant, organized by Father and whoever else could drum up the enthusiasm.
From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver
Risks of buying secondhand devices include outdated software, nongenuine replacement parts, activation locks, counterfeits and malware.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 23, 2026
DTN has said it believes the inflaters identified are counterfeits of its own product.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 9, 2026
While genuine and safe bargains are available, experts have warned about counterfeits endangering children and the health of others.
From BBC ● Apr. 15, 2026
Chap Achen, senior director analyst at research firm Gartner, said fraudsters are taking advantage of those policies to scam the system, including by sending back empty boxes, incorrect merchandise or counterfeits.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 5, 2026
Their counterfeits may crumble and tumble, but real truth can never fail.
From Sunshine Jane by Anne Warner
Nine Italian nationals have been arrested and charged with trading in counterfeited goods.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2024
But Leas sees these documents as mostly marketing, and these reports can be counterfeited.
From Slate ● Jul. 18, 2024
“Checks are more vulnerable than other payment methods to being compromised, counterfeited or stolen.”
From Washington Times ● Jun. 13, 2023
They were thus relatively scarce and could not be counterfeited.
From Textbooks ● Dec. 14, 2022
Full well they laughed with counterfeited glee At all his jokes for many a joke had he.
From "Angela's Ashes: A Memoir" by Frank McCourt
In 1888, in an effort to stem counterfeiting of their travel trunks, Louis Vuitton and his son, Georges, introduced the Damier “checkerboard” pattern, in distinctive shades of taupe and chocolate.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 2, 2026
“It looks like the company’s seemingly blatant attempts at counterfeiting patented weight-loss drugs via compounding finally went too far,” said On the Street Substack author Herb Greenberg.
From MarketWatch ● Feb. 9, 2026
Both men were charged with "counterfeiting medicines or medical products", and the 26-year-old also faces money-laundering charges.
From Barron's ● Dec. 3, 2025
Petersen plays Richard Chance, a Secret Service agent assigned to investigate a counterfeiting ring in Los Angeles.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 26, 2025
As part of the Department of the Treasury, its purpose was to fight counterfeiting.
From "Ambushed!" by Gail Jarrow
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
