counterfeit

American  

[koun-ter-fit] / ˈkaʊn tərˌfɪt /

adjective

1. made in imitation so as to be passed off fraudulently or deceptively as genuine; not genuine; forged.

   counterfeit dollar bills.

   Synonyms:

   bogus, spurious

2. pretended; unreal.

   counterfeit grief.

   Synonyms:

   ersatz, fake, mock, make-believe, pretend, feigned, sham

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noun

1. an imitation intended to be passed off fraudulently or deceptively as genuine; forgery.

   Synonyms:

   sham, falsification

2. Archaic. a copy.

3. Archaic. a close likeness; portrait.

4. Obsolete. impostor; pretender.

verb (used with object)

1. to make a counterfeit of; imitate fraudulently; forge.

   Synonyms:

   falsify, copy

2. to resemble.

3. to simulate.

verb (used without object)

1. to make counterfeits, as of money.

2. to feign; dissemble.

counterfeit British  

/ ˈkaʊntəfɪt /

adjective

1. made in imitation of something genuine with the intent to deceive or defraud; forged

2. simulated; sham

   counterfeit affection

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noun

1. an imitation designed to deceive or defraud

2. archaic an impostor; cheat

verb

1. (tr) to make a fraudulent imitation of

2. (intr) to make counterfeits

3. to feign; simulate

4. (tr) to imitate; copy

Related Words

See false.

Other Word Forms

• counterfeiter noun
• counterfeitly adverb
• counterfeitness noun
• noncounterfeit adjective
• uncounterfeited adjective

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 ( fact ); (verb) Middle English countrefeten, verbal derivative of countrefet

Example Sentences

Rolex looked at the multibillion-dollar annual trade in its secondhand watches, which is rife with counterfeits and speculators, and decided it had to intervene.

From The Wall Street Journal

The website also included warnings from the MHRA, the UK's governmental body that ensures medicines and medical devices are safe, about purchasing counterfeit products.

From BBC

They also are more flexible about storing goods like counterfeits.

From The Wall Street Journal

The Constitution contemplates Congress having limited law-enforcement powers and even specifies crimes it can punish: treason, counterfeiting, “offences against the law of nations” and “piracies and felonies on the high seas.”

From The Wall Street Journal

He cited a US investigation which found a significant proportion of items that its researchers bought on Shein and Temu were likely counterfeits.

From BBC

Related Words

• bogus
• copied
• false
• fictitious
• forged
• fraudulent
• phony
• spurious