pretext

[ pree-tekst ]

noun

1. something that is put forward to conceal a true purpose or object; an ostensible reason; excuse:

   The leaders used the insults as a pretext to declare war.

2. the misleading appearance or behavior assumed with this intention:

   His many lavish compliments were a pretext for subtle mockery.

   Synonyms: evasion, subterfuge

pretext

/ ˈpriːtɛkst /

noun

1. a fictitious reason given in order to conceal the real one
2. a specious excuse; pretence

Word History and Origins

Origin of pretext¹

1505–15; < Latin praetextum pretext, ornament, noun use of neuter past participle of praetexere to pretend, literally, to weave in front, hence, adorn. See pre-, texture

Word History and Origins

Origin of pretext¹

C16: from Latin praetextum disguise, from praetexere to weave in front, disguise; see texture

Example Sentences

How to upgrade your favorite sandwichAs many of us did, I channeled my covid anxiety into cooking and eating, using the pandemic as a pretext — okay, an excuse — to abandon dietary discipline temporarily, especially in the carb department.

From Washington Post

For Kavovit, that design was symbolic, as she considered that many of the women who say they were harassed or assaulted by Weinstein say they were brought behind closed doors under the pretext of work meetings.

From Fortune

Clemson Coach Dabo Swinney suggested Sunday that Florida State officials used a positive coronavirus test by a Tigers player Friday as a pretext to get out of a game they preferred not to play.

From Washington Post

In April, the president signed a decree, imploring telecoms companies to handover data on 226 million Brazilian citizens to the state statistical organization under the pretext of monitoring income and employment during the pandemic.

From MIT Technology Review

The 16-person crew booked an airplane under the pretext of flying to Stockholm for a wedding.

From Ozy

Maula Bux himself was killed in 2006, after being lured across the border by Iranian forces on the pretext of a drug deal.

From The Daily Beast

But now everything was a good pretext to vent the rebellious mood.

From The Daily Beast

Some Syrian rebel groups maintain that the Americans invented Khorasan as a pretext for the attack.

From The Daily Beast

But he warned against using the pretext of defense to launch vast campaigns of destruction.

From The Daily Beast

That pretext may have come with the violence that erupted in the port city of Odessa on yesterday.

From The Daily Beast

Both had appealed to Napoleon; consequently there was a decent pretext for sending a French army into Spain.

From Project Gutenberg

That is a very flimsy pretext, so that the fiscals may not perform their duties faithfully against the governor.

From Project Gutenberg

And for this reason the first help should be given to this State, and not to what has the pretext of piety.

From Project Gutenberg

She had a daughter who served her as a pretext for cultivating the society of young men of fashion.

From Project Gutenberg

She might have invented a pretext for staying away; she might even invent a pretext now for going.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• alibi
• come-off
• excuse
• guise
• ploy
• pretense
• ruse