pretense

[ pri-tens, pree-tens ]

/ prɪˈtɛns, ˈpri tɛns /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR pretense ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

pretending or feigning; make-believe: My sleepiness was all pretense.

a false show of something: a pretense of friendship.

a piece of make-believe.

the act of pretending or alleging falsely.

a false allegation or justification: He excused himself from the lunch on a pretense of urgent business.

insincere or false profession: His pious words were mere pretense.

the putting forth of an unwarranted claim.

the claim itself.

any allegation or claim: to obtain money under false pretenses.

pretension (usually followed by to): destitute of any pretense to wit.

pretentiousness.

Nearby words

preteen, pretence, pretend, pretended, pretender, pretense, pretension, pretensive, pretentious, preter-, preterhuman

Also especially British, pre·tence.

Origin of pretense

1375–1425; late Middle English < Anglo-French < Medieval Latin *praetēnsa, noun use of feminine of praetēnsus, past participle (replacing Latin praetentus) of praetendere to pretend

SYNONYMS FOR pretense

1 shamming.

2 semblance.

3 mask, veil.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR pretense ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

pre·tense·ful, adjectivepre·tense·less, adjective

Can be confused

pretense pretext

Examples from the Web for pretense

In Iraq and Syria, unlike in Libya, there is no pretense that this is anything less than war in the constitutional sense.
Who Gets to Decide When We Go to War?|Deborah Pearlstein|September 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
We would perhaps be tossing out any pretense of traditional baseball in exchange for popular thrill-a-minute spectacle.
Can Baseball’s All-Star Game Be Saved?|Peter C. Bjarkman|July 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
They are winning incremental battles under the pretense of health regulations and parental consent.
Ten Reasons Women Are Losing While Gays Keep Winning|Jay Michaelson|July 6, 2014|DAILY BEAST
There is not even the pretense of actual interaction with voters.
Good Riddance to Steve Stockman, the Grifter Congressman Who Ran for Senate|Ben Jacobs|March 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST

All along, Orman never made any pretense about her sexuality.
Can Suze Orman Save America?|Adam Auriemma|November 10, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The rest of the party had gone to the cliffs with the artist, the girls on a pretense of learning to sketch from nature.
Their Pilgrimage|Charles Dudley Warner
I'll break it off,—it will only be a pretense, of course, but at least no one will know what a fool I've been.
Fifty Contemporary One-Act Plays|Various
He did not pretend to be a learned man, any more than he made any other pretense which he could not justify.
Springhaven|R. D. Blackmore
Should she tell him she knew, or should she keep up the pretense a little longer?
Jerry Junior|Jean Webster
To give verisimilitude to the pretense, he even pulled out his watch.
The Firefly Of France|Marion Polk Angellotti