pretense, especially of an innocent or playful kind; playacting; fantasy.
the make-believe of children playing.
a pretender; a person who pretends.
a fantasy, pretence, or unreality
( as modifier )
a make-believe world
a person who pretends
First recorded in 1805–15
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Tesshi Nakagawa’s scenic design is like a toy kingdom that induces the audience into a state of make-believe.
From Los Angeles Times • May 13, 2026
None of these treatments make clear sense — mainly because they aren’t real — but that’s exactly Ca7riel & Paco Amoroso’s point: Fame is all make-believe pandemonium and there is no real recovery from it.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 19, 2026
I understood from the start that acting was make-believe and that it put food on the table and shoes on our feet.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 17, 2026
As long as Hegseth keeps his chest-thumping and pull-up contests in the land of make-believe, these men are happy.
From Salon • Mar. 13, 2026
The stage was massive, with vast red- and-gold curtains drawn back to reveal a magnificent make-believe forest with a rolling painted ocean at the back of the wooden deck.
From "The Marvels" by Brian Selznick
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.
