Potëmkin

American  

[poh-tem-kin, puh-, puh-tyawm-kyin] / poʊˈtɛm kɪn, pə-, pʌˈtyɔm kyɪn /

noun

1. Prince Grigori Aleksandrovich 1739–91, Russian statesman and favorite of Catherine II.

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Potemkin British  

/ paˈtjɔmkin, pɒˈtɛmkɪn /

noun

1. Grigori Aleksandrovich (ɡriˈɡɔrij alɪkˈsandrəvitʃ). 1739–91, Russian soldier and statesman; lover of Catherine II, whose favourite he remained until his death, and who is reputed to have erected sham villages along the route of the Empress's 1787 tour of the Crimea

2. apparently impressive but actually sham or artificial

   North Korea's Potemkin hospital

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Example Sentences

How many Potemkin villages did he visit?

From The Wall Street Journal

“And we were going to read Alexandra Potemkin and the Space Shuttle to Planet Z, too. Well, that’s disappointing.”

From Literature

Alexandra Potemkin and the Space Shuttle to Planet Z was my favorite so far.

From Literature

The only sounds that came out of me were little peeps, like a baby bird chirping “Alexandra Potemkin and the Space Shuttle to Planet Z.”

From Literature

It was itching to talk about how pleased I was with Ms. W. and the stories she gave me, and reading Alexandra Potemkin and the Space Shuttle to Planet Z most of all.

From Literature