make-believe
noun
pretense, especially of an innocent or playful kind; playacting; fantasy.
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make-believe
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make believe
make believeverbto pretend or enact a fantasy
make-believe
American
[mayk-bi-leev]
/ ˈmeɪk bɪˌliv /
noun
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pretense, especially of an innocent or playful kind; playacting; fantasy.
the make-believe of children playing.
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a pretender; a person who pretends.
adjective
make believe
British
verb
noun
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a fantasy, pretence, or unreality
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( as modifier )
a make-believe world
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a person who pretends
make believe
Idioms
Etymology
Origin of make-believe
First recorded in 1805–15
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:
Photo make-believe: I’m conflicted about the new suite of Apple Intelligence photo-editing tools.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
But make-believe can only get one so far when the real world keeps intruding.
From Salon ● Sep. 9, 2026
“Performing and make-believe eased my anxieties. I was able to step outside of myself,” she said.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 2, 2026
And with every request comes an unspoken plea for understanding, no matter how far into the land of make-believe they’re asking to be led.
From Slate ● Jul. 19, 2026
There were huge boxes attached to the windows, which contained make-believe stars and spacecraft, so that when we looked out the windows we would see what we would see in flight.
From "Flying to the Moon: An Astronaut's Story" by Michael Collins
Bitcoin might be make believe, but it’s also the center of speculative activity in financial markets.
From Barron's ● Dec. 2, 2025
Because if someone tells you you’re a moron over and over, even if it’s just make believe, it gets under your skin.
From New York Times ● Jul. 12, 2023
“And just make believe and playing. And then on a personal level, I think I learned how to be myself … that everyone would accept me for who I was.”
From Washington Times ● Mar. 21, 2023
It is a sensation without parallel in the world of make believe.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 25, 2023
“We had to make believe we were your kids,” I explained, and you should have seen him smile.
From "The Pigman" by Paul Zindel
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
