pretended

American  

[pri-ten-did] / prɪˈtɛn dɪd /

adjective

1. insincerely or falsely professed.

   a pretended interest in art.

2. feigned, fictitious, or counterfeit.

   His pretended wealth was proved to be nonexistent.

3. alleged or asserted; reputed.

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Other Word Forms

• pretendedly adverb
• self-pretended adjective
• unpretended adjective

Etymology

Origin of pretended

late Middle English word dating back to 1425–75; pretend, -ed ²

Example Sentences

They were what “so many Germans pretended to have been after the war: unpolitisch, ‘apolitical.’”

From The Wall Street Journal

“It’s just—everyone disappeared when my dad got sick, or they pretended nothing was happening. And you . . .” He meets my eyes for a split second, then looks back down.

From Literature

Someone should pick her to be in them, posing with one hand on her waist, which was just the right size, and the other one flung up behind her as she pretended to walk.

From Literature

In the campaign identified by Dutch intelligence agencies, hackers pretended to be Signal Support to try and get people to share account details.

From BBC

I just ran the line, took a beaver now and then, and pretended somewhere in my mind that I was Sergeant Preston and had a whole team of Kings out in front of me.

From Literature