false
Americanadjective
-
not true or correct; erroneous.
a false statement.
-
uttering or declaring what is untrue.
a false witness.
- Synonyms:
- mendacious, lying, untruthful
-
not faithful or loyal; treacherous.
a false friend.
- Synonyms:
- traitorous, perfidious, inconstant, unfaithful, disloyal, disingenuous, hypocritical, insincere
-
tending to deceive or mislead; deceptive.
a false impression.
- Synonyms:
- fallacious, misleading
-
not genuine; counterfeit.
- Synonyms:
- artificial, bogus, spurious, artificial
-
based on mistaken, erroneous, or inconsistent impressions, ideas, or facts.
false pride.
-
used as a substitute or supplement, especially temporarily.
false supports for a bridge.
-
Biology. having a superficial resemblance to something that properly bears the name.
the false acacia.
-
not properly, accurately, or honestly made, done, or adjusted.
a false balance.
-
inaccurate in pitch, as a musical note.
adverb
idioms
adjective
-
not in accordance with the truth or facts
-
irregular or invalid
a false start
-
untruthful or lying
a false account
-
not genuine, real, or natural; artificial; fake
false eyelashes
-
being or intended to be misleading or deceptive
a false rumour
-
disloyal or treacherous
a false friend
-
based on mistaken or irrelevant ideas or facts
false pride
a false argument
-
(prenominal) (esp of plants) superficially resembling the species specified
false hellebore
-
serving to supplement or replace, often temporarily
a false keel
-
music
-
(of a note, interval, etc) out of tune
-
(of the interval of a perfect fourth or fifth) decreased by a semitone
-
(of a cadence) interrupted or imperfect
-
adverb
Related Words
False, sham, counterfeit agree in referring to something that is not genuine. False is used mainly of imitations of concrete objects; it sometimes implies an intent to deceive: false teeth; false hair. Sham is rarely used of concrete objects and usually has the suggestion of intent to deceive: sham title; sham tears. Counterfeit always has the implication of cheating; it is used particularly of spurious imitation of coins, paper money, etc.
Other Word Forms
- falsely adverb
- falseness noun
- half-false adjective
- quasi-false adjective
- quasi-falsely adverb
Etymology
Origin of false
First recorded before 1000; Middle English, Old English fals, from Latin falsus “feigned, false,” originally past participle of fallere “to deceive”; reinforced by or reborrowed from Anglo-French, Old French fals (feminine false ), from Latin
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.
And they worry that a narrative suggesting all waste can be dealt with responsibly is false and misleading.
From Los Angeles Times
Mr. Pitts laments that if only Routledge’s evidence had not been lost, “the false narratives would never have been born.”
He also faces a charge of fraud by false representation.
From BBC
DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin, who did not respond to repeated requests from The Texas Tribune, said in a statement that “any claim that there are ‘inhumane’ conditions at ICE detention centers are categorically false.”
From Salon
The resiliency report also found that residents experienced “evacuation warning fatigue” from routine false alarms, making them hesitant to evacuate.
From Los Angeles Times
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.
