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

"The biggest problem with Pakistani medicine was that we used to receive counterfeit and fake medicines," ministry spokesman Sharafat Zaman told AFP.

From Barron's • Feb. 16, 2026

Imitators can simply counterfeit QR code labels, for example.

From BBC • Feb. 9, 2026

“ReturnPro had a need, through a rise in fraudulent, counterfeit items that came across through its buildings, to find ways to eliminate that,” said Sender Shamiss, chief executive and co-founder of ReturnPro.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 5, 2026

The scheme transformed the following year into one that produced and marketed several million bottles of counterfeit drink that was mixed under unsanitary conditions by day laborers, prosecutors said.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 17, 2026

“They paid like three hundred dollars to some scalper for counterfeit tickets!”

From "Small Steps" by Louis Sachar

Related Words

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