pretend
Fake it out
To pretend is to act as if something is true when it isn't.
Children pretend to be superheroes; adults pretend to be interested in dull conversations.
The word can suggest imagination (Let's pretend we're pirates) or deception (He pretended not to notice).
As an adjective, pretend means imaginary or make-believe: pretend money, a pretend friend.
A pretender is someone who claims something falsely, especially a throne.
Pretend to have
- fakeNot the real thing
- shamFraudulent imitation
- dissembleConceal one's motives
- bluffCalculated false front
con · mislead · hoodwink · dupe · falsify · fabricate · counterfeit · hoax
Deceptive act or costume party
- pantomimeDrama through gesture alone
- mimeWordless expressive performer
- skitBrief comic performance
- farceAbsurd, laughable situation
spoof · impersonation · parody · mockery · act · performance · show · guise
Imaginative play or fantasy
- role-playAssume a character temporarily
- dress-upPlay involving costumes
- cops and robbersChildren's game of chase
- houseResidential building
tea party · imaginary friend · toy · doll · action figure · superhero · princess · pirate
Conscious fantasy while awake
- fantasizeIndulge in wishful thinking
- envisionPicture in thought
- visualizeForm mental pictures
- conjureSummon by supernatural means
dream · make-believe · invent · fancy · picture · suppose · ideate · conceive
Reproduce another's behavior
- mimicOne who copies others
- emulateCopy with aspiration
- copyIdentical reproduction made
- mirrorReflective viewing surface
ape · mock · replicate · model · impersonate · pose · act like · pass as
feign
Pretend to have
bluff · con · mislead · hoodwink · dupe · falsify · fabricate · counterfeit · hoax · fraud
masquerade
Deceptive act or costume party
farce · spoof · impersonation · parody · mockery · act · performance · show · guise · facade
make-believe
Imaginative play or fantasy
- role-playAssume a character temporarily
- dress-upPlay involving costumes
- cops and robbersChildren's game of chase
house · tea party · imaginary friend · toy · doll · action figure · superhero · princess · pirate · cowboys
daydream
Conscious fantasy while awake
conjure · dream · make-believe · invent · fancy · picture · suppose · ideate · conceive · speculate
imitate
Reproduce another's behavior
mirror · ape · mock · replicate · model · impersonate · pose · act like · pass as · approximate
acting
Temporarily holding position
rehearsal · stage · performance · drama · scene · monologue · method · audition · improv · thespian
profess
Declare openly, claim belief
- purportClaimed meaning or intent
- allegeAssert without substantiation
- claimStatement of ownership or truth
assert · maintain · avow · declare · protest · represent · hold out · so-called · ostensible · alleged
- kids playplaytime, playing, board games, blocks, card games
- playplay, free play, games, played, toys
- storytellingstorytelling, story, tale, narrative, narrator
- pretend playmake believe, dress-up, dollhouse, dress up, roleplay
- acting verbsperform, portray, enact, play a role, rehearse
- fakefake, phony, bogus, sham, counterfeit
pretendreal
Truly existing, not fake
genuine · actual · authentic · true · legitimate
- let's pretend
- false pretensesDeceptive claims for gain
- pretend not to see
- pretend playImaginative childhood roleplay
- The PretenderFalse claimant to throne
pretended, pretending, pretense, pretentious, pretext, pretends, pretender, pretension, unpretentious