- a variation of pretense.
pretence
Americannoun
noun
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the act of pretending
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a false display; affectation
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a claim, esp a false one, to a right, title, or distinction
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make-believe or feigning
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a false claim or allegation; pretext
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a less common word for pretension
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.
Mr. Macron has since abandoned any pretence of an economic-growth agenda.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 25, 2026
Scappaticci was engaged in a pretence to help shore up his reputation: publicly fighting a legal case, while hoping – and expecting – he would lose.
From BBC ● Jan. 25, 2026
Rachel and Stephen huddled around the illustration in the castle foyer with faithful Reece, under the pretence of translating its Latin inscription, before the two traitors asked Reece to make himself scarce.
From BBC ● Jan. 23, 2026
The prosecution alleges Ms Patterson invited the group to lunch "on the pretence she'd been diagnosed with cancer".
From BBC ● Apr. 30, 2025
I loved the playacting and the pretence and the secrecy of it, and I flattered myself with my own importance.
From "Code Name Verity" by Elizabeth Wein
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.
