pretense
Americannoun
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pretending or feigning; make-believe.
My sleepiness was all pretense.
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a false show of something.
a pretense of friendship.
- Synonyms:
- semblance
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a piece of make-believe.
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the act of pretending or alleging falsely.
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a false allegation or justification.
He excused himself from the lunch on a pretense of urgent business.
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insincere or false profession.
His pious words were mere pretense.
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the putting forth of an unwarranted claim.
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the claim itself.
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any allegation or claim.
to obtain money under false pretenses.
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pretension (usually followed byto ).
destitute of any pretense to wit.
Other Word Forms
- pretenseful adjective
- pretenseless adjective
Etymology
Origin of pretense
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Anglo-French, from unattested Medieval Latin praetēnsa, noun use of feminine of praetēnsus, past participle (replacing Latin praetentus ) of praetendere “to put forward, stretch forth, pretend”; pretend
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.
Five days earlier, at around 7 a.m., the couple had crossed the border into Kazakhstan in a hired Toyota Hiace van, under the pretense of taking a vacation.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 10, 2025
Ironically, the situation now is a bastard version of one reform favored by free market types: paying athletes without any pretense that they are real students.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 24, 2025
By the end, he abandons any pretense of legal reasoning, quoting lines from the majority and waving them away as “misleading,” without any explanation.
From Slate • Nov. 20, 2025
His publicists invited her under the pretense of a business dinner with Vogue editor in chief Anna Wintour, then White surprised Dobrev instead.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 11, 2025
She answered him in monosyllables, as though he had betrayed her by breaking the rules of her pretense.
From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
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.
