forgery

American  

[fawr-juh-ree, fohr-] / ˈfɔr dʒə ri, ˈfoʊr- /

noun

forgeries plural

1. the crime of falsely making or altering a writing by which the legal rights or obligations of another person are apparently affected; simulated signing of another person's name to any such writing whether or not it is also the forger's name.

2. the production of a spurious work that is claimed to be genuine, as a coin, a painting, or the like.

3. something, as a coin, a work of art, or a writing, produced by forgery.

4. an act of producing something forged.

5. Archaic. invention; artifice.

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forgery British  

/ ˈfɔːdʒərɪ /

noun

1. the act of reproducing something for a deceitful or fraudulent purpose

2. something forged, such as a work of art or an antique

3. criminal law

   1. the false making or altering of any document, such as a cheque or character reference (and including a postage stamp), or any tape or disc on which information is stored, intending that anyone shall accept it as genuine and so act to his or another's prejudice

   2. something forged

4. criminal law the counterfeiting of a seal or die with intention to defraud

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• forgeries
  plural

Etymology

Origin of forgery

First recorded in 1565–75; forge ¹ + -ery

Explanation

If you painted a copy of the Mona Lisa and sold it to a museum, claiming it was the original, your painting could be called a forgery, and the crime you've committed is also forgery. Forgery is a legal word describing a white-collar crime that could involve faking a famous painting, making a false passport that claims you're the King of Swaziland, or copying your boss's signature onto a document. Both the crime of forgery and the sense of forge that means "to make" or "to sculpt" come from the Latin root word fabricare, or "fabricate."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

forgery forgeries

"The forgery does not have to look convincing on its own," Van Ess added.

From Barron's ● Jul. 31, 2026

While investigators didn’t reveal their identities, the charges focus on document forgery and breach of trust.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 2026

A former top officer of the Los Angeles Fire Department’s labor union was arrested Wednesday and charged with grand theft and forgery for allegedly stealing more than $82,000 from a charity for injured firefighters.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 17, 2026

The tribunal heard that both Campbell's legal team and The Charity Commission have referred the forgery and fraud allegations to the police.

From BBC ● Jun. 16, 2026

This, at all events, is what Ingulf of Croyland used to tell us, until he was discovered to be a forgery.

From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White

The expert concluded that Hsieh’s signatures in the surprise will are forgeries.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 16, 2025

Previously, reports from these two laboratories accompanied two paintings proven to be forgeries in a BBC documentary, The Zaks Affair: Anatomy of a Fake Collection.

From BBC ● Aug. 23, 2025

The account’s clear historical forgeries are somewhat obvious.

From Slate ● Apr. 10, 2024

These turned out to be crude forgeries, but even as their authenticity was being questioned, Murdoch purchased the U.S.,

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 21, 2023

FBI lab experts confirmed that the women’s signatures were excellent forgeries.

From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield

Related Words

• falsification