sham
Americannoun
adjective
-
pretended; counterfeit; feigned.
sham attacks; a sham Gothic façade.
- Synonyms:
- mock, make-believe, spurious
- Antonyms:
- genuine
-
designed, made, or used as a sham.
verb (used with object)
verb (used without object)
noun
-
anything that is not what it purports or appears to be
-
something false, fake, or fictitious that purports to be genuine
-
a person who pretends to be something other than he is
adjective
verb
Synonym Usage
See false.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
shamsimple
-
shamssimple
-
have shammedperfect
-
has shammedperfect
-
am shammingprogressive
-
are shammingprogressive
-
is shammingprogressive
-
have been shammingperfect progressive
-
has been shammingperfect progressive
Past
-
shammedsimple
-
had shammedperfect
-
was shammingprogressive
-
were shammingprogressive
-
had been shammingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of sham
First recorded in 1670–80; perhaps an alteration of shame ( def. ); origin uncertain
Explanation
A sham is a fake. If you frequently order products advertised on late-night, hour-long television commercials, you’ve probably ended up with at least one item that was a sham. All-purpose, industrial strength stain remover, anyone? Sham can be used to refer to people as well as to things. Remember that doctor from the late-night TV commercial advertising UltraMiracleCure vitamin pills? He’s probably a sham, or a quack. Some sources claim that the word sham originated in the 17th century and was derived from the English word shame, but who knows? Maybe that theory’s a sham too.
Vocabulary lists containing sham
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
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Refugee
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This Week in Words: April 1 - 6, 2018
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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.
But Dr. Prasad demanded a randomized controlled trial with a placebo group undergoing sham brain surgery.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 19, 2026
It included a sham surgery control group, allowing researchers to directly compare outcomes against a placebo procedure.
From Science Daily • May 6, 2026
Mityana police told the BBC that an operation in 2023 rescued 24 severely injured dogs kept in poor conditions at a sham shelter in town, and transferred them to Kampala for treatment.
From BBC • May 3, 2026
The FDA has demanded the company run another trial in which some patients would have to undergo sham brain surgery to serve as a control group.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 3, 2026
Like if you touched it, it would crumble or end up being a sham, hollow.
From "Adrift" by Paul Griffin
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.
