Pretend meaning

What does “pretend” mean? Definitions, examples, synonyms and opposites.

“pretend” is a noun, verb and adjective with 8 meanings. Its most common meaning is: the enactment of a pretense.

pretend

make believe with the intent to deceive
“He feigned that he was ill”
“He shammed a headache”
Synonymsfeign sham affect dissemble
behave unnaturally or affectedly
“She's just acting”
Synonymsdissemble act
put forward a claim and assert right or possession of
“pretend the title of King”
put forward, of a guess, in spite of possible refutation
“I am guessing that the price of real estate will rise again”
“I cannot pretend to say that you are wrong”
Synonymsguess venture hazard
represent fictitiously, as in a play, or pretend to be or act like
“She makes like an actress”
Synonymsmake make believe
state insincerely
“He professed innocence but later admitted his guilt”
“She pretended not to have known the suicide bomber”
Synonymsprofess

imagined as in a play
“the make-believe world of theater”
“play money”
Synonymsmake-believe

Source: WordNet 3.1, Princeton University