1
as in mock
lacking in natural or spontaneous quality
he shows a pretended affection for his girlfriend's cat
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in fake
not being or expressing what one appears to be or express
hoped that his pretended interest in classical music would impress the boss
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in posed
to take on a false or deceptive appearance
I pretended that I didn't care that my ex had a new man in her life
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in assumed
to present a false appearance of
as if I would ever pretend illness just to take off a day from work
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Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of pretended
Helen Shaw, Vulture, 28 Mar. 2022
What most activates Dunn’s rage is the misogyny that only deepened amid all the pretended freedoms of the counterculture.
—Sam Sacks, WSJ, 11 Nov. 2022
No, seriously: People were very upset by these shoes, or at least pretended to be.
—Heather Wilhelm, National Review, 31 Aug. 2017
Josh Wigler, The Hollywood Reporter, 23 Dec. 2024
Roc Nation agents allegedly pretended to work for the State of Texas and flashed fake badges, Buzbee said.
—Gord Magill, Newsweek, 20 Dec. 2024
In the meantime, Griffin pretended to like the other gift.
—Raechal Shewfelt, EW.com, 20 Dec. 2024
Upon Cannon’s announcement, one Buffalo dropped to the stage floor and pretended to make snow angels.
—Malia Mendez, Los Angeles Times, 19 Dec. 2024
Ryan Harris, 36, of New Orleans, was among eight people and two law firms that have been charged in what federal prosecutors say was a yearslong scheme of crashing vehicles into tractor-trailers, fleeing while passengers in those vehicles pretended to be the drivers and lying about what happened.
—Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 14 Dec. 2024
Scottsdale police allege Hussein pretended to be a rideshare driver between March and December 2024.
—Jimmy Jenkins, The Arizona Republic, 13 Dec. 2024
John pretended to fake fight me at The P @princetonavnj .
—Danielle Jennings, People.com, 12 Dec. 2024
In 1966, Cole starred with Deborah Walley (Gidget Goes Hawaiian) in the 3D sci-fi film The Bubble and appeared on an episode of Gunsmoke in which his character pretended to be the son of a man killed by Matt Dillon (James Arness).
—Mike Barnes, The Hollywood Reporter, 10 Dec. 2024
Adjective
The woman is long gone, so Freer has to imagine her consent — in a history so full of gaps, coercion, and disappearance, a pretended connection is better than none at all.
—Helen Shaw, Vulture, 28 Mar. 2022
What most activates Dunn’s rage is the misogyny that only deepened amid all the pretended freedoms of the counterculture.
—Sam Sacks, WSJ, 11 Nov. 2022
No, seriously: People were very upset by these shoes, or at least pretended to be.
—Heather Wilhelm, National Review, 31 Aug. 2017
Verb
Oh Il-nam (Oh Yeong-su), a dying old man who pretended to be Gi-hun’s ally in the game.
—Josh Wigler, The Hollywood Reporter, 23 Dec. 2024
Roc Nation agents allegedly pretended to work for the State of Texas and flashed fake badges, Buzbee said.
—Gord Magill, Newsweek, 20 Dec. 2024
In the meantime, Griffin pretended to like the other gift.
—Raechal Shewfelt, EW.com, 20 Dec. 2024
Upon Cannon’s announcement, one Buffalo dropped to the stage floor and pretended to make snow angels.
—Malia Mendez, Los Angeles Times, 19 Dec. 2024
Ryan Harris, 36, of New Orleans, was among eight people and two law firms that have been charged in what federal prosecutors say was a yearslong scheme of crashing vehicles into tractor-trailers, fleeing while passengers in those vehicles pretended to be the drivers and lying about what happened.
—Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 14 Dec. 2024
Scottsdale police allege Hussein pretended to be a rideshare driver between March and December 2024.
—Jimmy Jenkins, The Arizona Republic, 13 Dec. 2024
John pretended to fake fight me at The P @princetonavnj .
—Danielle Jennings, People.com, 12 Dec. 2024
In 1966, Cole starred with Deborah Walley (Gidget Goes Hawaiian) in the 3D sci-fi film The Bubble and appeared on an episode of Gunsmoke in which his character pretended to be the son of a man killed by Matt Dillon (James Arness).
—Mike Barnes, The Hollywood Reporter, 10 Dec. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pretended
Adjective
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The group, which also includes the likes of Jim Nill, Kyle Dubas and Scott Salmond, would submit mock rosters in the months leading up to the final roster decisions.Pierre LeBrun, The Athletic, 31 Dec. 2024
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Conduct mock migrations to test resilience, refine contingency plans and train staff to handle potential emergencies efficiently. 5.Ashar Samdani, Forbes, 30 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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The Irish also converted a fake field goal against Georgia Tech, covertly swapping holders from Chris Salerno to Tyler Buchner.Pete Sampson, The Athletic, 31 Dec. 2024
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The stock surged earlier this year after regulators lifted a key penalty tied to its 2016 fake accounts scandal.Morgan Chittum, CNBC, 30 Dec. 2024
Verb
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Other linguistic features once assumed to be universal—such as tenses, personal pronouns, and even, potentially, a distinction between nouns and verbs—have turned up missing when greater numbers of languages have been scrutinized.Manvir Singh, The New Yorker, 23 Dec. 2024
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Some cognitive scientists have assumed that all humans, whatever their local quirks, reason about time using spatial metaphors, yet at least one language, Tupi-Kawahíb, evidently lacks any mapping between time and space—not left to right, back to front, or downhill to uphill.Manvir Singh, The New Yorker, 23 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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This show feels very, very real to me, having gone through my own period of personal crisis, leading to my own strained relationship with my daughter who is the same age as Alice, and struggling to come out the other side.Erik Kain, Forbes, 1 Jan. 2025
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These unsafe conditions can also lead to strained relationships.Sarah Boden, NPR, 30 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Carlsen is thirty-four years old, almost double Dommaraju’s age and the age of the World Rapid Championship winner, Volodar Murzin, who, like Dommaraju, is eighteen.Louisa Thomas, The New Yorker, 5 Jan. 2025
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The tiny house is accessed via double glass doors or an adjacent single glass door.Adam Williams, New Atlas, 3 Jan. 2025
Verb
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Our nurses who acted with such courage and dedication during the pandemic.Robert B. Reich, Hartford Courant, 24 Dec. 2024
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Reese acted as a robot, basically.Simon Thompson, Forbes, 24 Dec. 2024
Verb
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Depending on the intensity, duration and sequence of those vibrations, sensations such as being tapped, stroked or squeezed can be simulated.Ben Coxworth, New Atlas, 23 Dec. 2024
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The series of tests, which began in January 2024, simulated the extreme conditions of a launch abort scenario to see how the spacecraft would withstand an emergency event, according to a statement from NASA.Samantha Mathewson, Space.com, 20 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Nashville) Letter:Trump's false claims on pet-eating scared me into hiding my cat.David Plazas, The Tennessean, 20 Dec. 2024
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Pennsylvania prosecutors charged Mangione with charges related to forgery, firearms being carried without a license, tampering with records or identification, possessing instruments of crime and false identification to law enforcement authorities.Molly Bohannon, Forbes, 19 Dec. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near pretended
Cite this Entry
“Pretended.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pretended. Accessed 8 Jan. 2025.
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