phony
or pho·ney
[foh-nee]
- not real or genuine; fake; counterfeit: a phony diamond.
- false or deceiving; not truthful; concocted: a phony explanation.
- insincere or deceitful; affected or pretentious: a phony sales representative.
Show More
- something that is phony; a counterfeit or fake.
- an insincere, pretentious, or deceitful person: He thought my friends were a bunch of phonies.
Show More
- to falsify; counterfeit; fabricate (often followed by up): to phony up a document.
Show More
Origin of phony
1895–1900; perhaps alteration and respelling of fawney (slang) finger ring (< Irish fsptáinne), if taken to mean “false” in the phrase fawney rig a confidence game in which a brass ring is sold as a gold one
Synonyms
See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.comDictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words
ambidexterityambidextrousartificialitybackhandeddeceitfuldeceptivedeviousdisingenuousdoubledouble-dealingduplicitousevasivefaithlessfakehollowhypocriticallyingmendaciousperfidiousphonyExamples from the Web for phoniness
Contemporary Examples
He was going nuts with frustration in the face of what he considered to be phoniness and untruth.
phony
- a variant spelling (esp US) of phoney
Show More
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for phoniness
phony
adj.
also phoney, "not genuine," 1899, perhaps an alteration of fawney "gilt brass ring used by swindlers."
His most successful swindle was selling "painted" or "phony" diamonds. He had a plan of taking cheap stones, and by "doctoring" them make them have a brilliant and high class appearance. His confederates would then take the diamonds to other pawnbrokers and dispose of them. ["The Jewelers Review," New York, April 5, 1899]
The noun meaning "phony person or thing" is attested from 1902.
Show More
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper