pretended
Americanadjective
-
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.
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
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The vice president pretended to pivot from “a longer discussion” of the subject, but then he immediately started pontificating about the culture’s “desire” to classify “celestial beings who fly around “as aliens.”
From Salon • Apr. 1, 2026
Reflecting on his time at the station, Mills told Newsbeat his success and longevity as a DJ had been down to having "pretended to be on in my bedroom from the age of six".
From BBC • Mar. 30, 2026
It’s that it apparently knowingly produced fake results and falsely pretended they were real and accurate.
From MarketWatch • Mar. 18, 2026
The really crazy thing is that anyone ever pretended you could.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 18, 2026
That he had pretended to like her, that she had been fooled enough to trust him.
From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny
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.
