pretended

[ pri-ten-did ]

/ prɪˈtɛn dɪd /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR pretended ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

insincerely or falsely professed: a pretended interest in art.

feigned, fictitious, or counterfeit: His pretended wealth was proved to be nonexistent.

alleged or asserted; reputed.

Nearby words

pretarsus, pretax, preteen, pretence, pretend, pretended, pretender, pretense, pretension, pretensive, pretentious

Origin of pretended

late Middle English word dating back to 1425–75; see origin at pretend, -ed²

Related formspre·tend·ed·ly, adverbself-pre·tend·ed, adjectiveun·pre·tend·ed, adjective

Definition for pretended (2 of 2)

pretend

[ pri-tend ]

/ prɪˈtɛnd /

verb (used with object)

to cause or attempt to cause (what is not so) to seem so: to pretend illness; to pretend that nothing is wrong.

to appear falsely, as to deceive; feign: to pretend to go to sleep.

to make believe: The children pretended to be cowboys.

to presume; venture: I can't pretend to say what went wrong.

to allege or profess, especially insincerely or falsely: He pretended to have no knowledge of her whereabouts.

verb (used without object)

to make believe.

to lay claim to (usually followed by to): She pretended to the throne.

to make pretensions (usually followed by to): He pretends to great knowledge.

Obsolete. to aspire, as a suitor or candidate (followed by to).

adjective

Informal. make-believe; simulated; counterfeit: pretend diamonds.

Origin of pretend

1325–75; Middle English pretenden < Latin praetendere to stretch forth, put forward, pretend. See pre-, tend¹

SYNONYMS FOR pretend

1 simulate, fake, sham, counterfeit. Pretend, affect, assume, feign imply an attempt to create a false appearance. To pretend is to create an imaginary characteristic or to play a part: to pretend sorrow. To affect is to make a consciously artificial show of having qualities that one thinks would look well and impress others: to affect shyness. To assume is to take on or put on a specific outward appearance, often (but not always) with intent to deceive: to assume an air of indifference. To feign implies using ingenuity in pretense, and some degree of imitation of appearance or characteristics: to feign surprise.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR pretend ON THESAURUS.COM

Can be confusedportend pretend (see synonym study at the current entry)

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for pretended

Hannigan pretended to be a basketball pro in order to impress a hot guy she had a crush on—only she had never played basketball.
‘My Crazy Love’ Reveals the Craziest Lies People Tell for Love|Kevin Fallon|November 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Our Pashto interpreter explained how he had pretended to be a Pakistani policeman when interested crowds approached the compound.
I Shot Bin Laden|Elliot Ackerman|November 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
When he stopped by with the mail, he smiled, and we all pretended things were normal.
Bergdahl’s Dad: Drone Killed Captor’s Kid|Michael Ames|June 6, 2014|DAILY BEAST
I offered him my hand in congratulation, and he seized and shook it like the good-natured fool he was—or pretended to be.
Read ‘The King in Yellow,’ the ‘True Detective’ Reference That’s the Key to the Show|Robert W. Chambers|February 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST

I pretended to be a 35-year-old man from Kansas with a spouse and child.
Why Obamacare Could Help the Democrats in 2014|Michael Tomasky|December 5, 2013|DAILY BEAST
When I came down to dessert that evening I pretended to be quite happy and comfortable, and to have nothing on my mind.
A Flat Iron for a Farthing|Juliana Horatia Ewing
Miss Lady pretended to effect a part in the few straggling hairs that adorned his forehead.
A Romance of Billy-Goat Hill|Alice Hegan Rice
So the king came at night and visited my wife at will, and as if fatigued, pretended to go to sleep, remembering what I had said.
The Kath Sarit Sgara|Somadeva Bhatta
Despite his hunger, Grif pretended to consider for a few moments.
Grif|B. L. (Benjamin Leopold) Farjeon
It offended verisimilitude, like the pretended anxiety of Robinson Crusoe and others to escape from uninhabited islands.
Across the Plains|Robert Louis Stevenson

British Dictionary definitions for pretended

pretend

/ (prɪˈtɛnd) /

verb

(when tr, usually takes a clause as object or an infinitive) to claim or allege (something untrue)

(tr; may take a clause as object or an infinitive) to make believe, as in a playyou pretend to be Ophelia

(intr foll by to) to present a claim, esp a dubious oneto pretend to the throne

(intr foll by to) obsolete to aspire as a candidate or suitor (for)

adjective

fanciful; make-believe; simulateda pretend gun

Word Origin for pretend

C14: from Latin praetendere to stretch forth, feign, from prae in front + tendere to stretch

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 pretended (1 of 3)

pretended

adj.

mid-15c., "so-called," past participle adjective from pretend (v.).

Word Origin and History for pretended (1 of 3)

pretend

late 14c., "to profess, assert, maintain" (a claim, etc.), "to direct (one's) efforts," from Old French pretendre "to lay claim," from Latin praetendere "stretch in front, put forward, allege," from prae "before" (see pre-) + tendere "to stretch," from PIE root *ten- "to stretch" (see tend).

Main modern sense of "feign, put forward a false claim" is recorded from c.1400; the older sense of simply "to claim" is behind the string of royal pretenders (1690s) in English history. Meaning "to play, make believe" is recorded from 1865. In 17c. pretend also could mean "make a suit of marriage for," from a sense in French. Related: Pretended; pretending.

Word Origin and History for pretended (2 of 3)

pretend

"fact of pretending," 1888, from children's talk, from pretend (v.). Earlier in same sense was verbal noun pretending (1640s).

pretended

adjective

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Nearby words

Origin of pretended

Definition for pretended (2 of 2)

pretend

verb (used with object)

verb (used without object)

adjective

Origin of pretend

Examples from the Web for pretended

British Dictionary definitions for pretended

pretend

verb

adjective

Word Origin for pretend

Word Origin and History for pretended (1 of 3)

pretended

Word Origin and History for pretended (1 of 3)

pretend

Word Origin and History for pretended (2 of 3)

pretend