1
as in counterfeit
being such in appearance only and made or manufactured with the intention of committing fraud
a spurious Picasso painting that wouldn't have fooled an art expert for a second
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in false
lacking in natural or spontaneous quality
claimed that the governor's election-year enthusiasm for conservation was spurious, since he had cut funding for state parks
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in illegitimate
born to a father and mother who are not married
the spurious son of Charles II, the Duke of Monmouth would later mount a rebellion in a disastrous attempt to claim the throne
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of spurious
The spurious designation of Qassem Soleimani as a global terrorist, something long requested by Benjamin Netanyahu, gave the green light for the expansion of the designation to other entities long held off from the moniker out of fear of its implications.
—
Séamus Malekafzali, Washington Post, 8 Jan. 2026
Many politicians and government employees learned from The Times that they had been targeted with spurious filings.
—Melody Gutierrez, Los Angeles Times, 6 Jan. 2026
Meanwhile, agents will be talking up their clients and spurious links made with all manner of players.
—Andy Mitten, New York Times, 5 Jan. 2026
Soon papers were published with claims of galaxies at redshifts of 10, 11 and even higher—and while many of those preliminary measurements wound up being spurious, several were ultimately confirmed out to redshifts greater than 14.
—Phil Plait, Scientific American, 25 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for spurious
Séamus Malekafzali, Washington Post, 8 Jan. 2026
Many politicians and government employees learned from The Times that they had been targeted with spurious filings.
—Melody Gutierrez, Los Angeles Times, 6 Jan. 2026
Meanwhile, agents will be talking up their clients and spurious links made with all manner of players.
—Andy Mitten, New York Times, 5 Jan. 2026
Soon papers were published with claims of galaxies at redshifts of 10, 11 and even higher—and while many of those preliminary measurements wound up being spurious, several were ultimately confirmed out to redshifts greater than 14.
—Phil Plait, Scientific American, 25 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for spurious
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spurious
Adjective
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Inside his vehicle, authorities discovered roughly 11 pounds of methamphetamine and about 6,000 counterfeit pills containing fentanyl.—
Stepheny Price,
FOXNews.com,
17 Mar. 2026
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The indictment also accused the men of purchasing the counterfeit prescription drugs without proper paperwork, known as T3s/pedigrees, and reselling them to pharmacy customers.—
Jay Weaver,
Miami Herald,
16 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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The problem is that such inferences are often wildly speculative and will almost certainly lead to false convictions or arrests.—
Graham Hillard,
The Washington Examiner,
20 Mar. 2026
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The defendants and company executives allegedly prepared false documents and communications to show that the company was the end user of the servers.—
Michael Sinkewicz,
FOXNews.com,
20 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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The show followed the destitute Cuylers — father Early, his illegitimate son Rusty, his meth-loving sister Lily, and his crabby grandmother Granny — and their various moneymaking high jinks.—
Eric Vilas-Boas,
Vulture,
18 Mar. 2026
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But then a mysterious Romany woman (Rebecca Ferguson) turns up, and persuades him to return to Birmingham, in order to bring his violent illegitimate son (Barry Keoghan) – who now runs his Peaky Blinders mob – to heel.—
The Week UK,
TheWeek,
12 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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The difference between a real deadline, imposed for legitimate reasons from without, and a fake one, conjured from within, is like the difference between eating brunch and seeing it on Instagram.—
Joshua Rothman,
New Yorker,
20 Mar. 2026
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Later, O’Brien touted a fake company tasked with reformatting movies for smaller and smaller handheld devices, but the joke missed the mark.—
Peter Tonguette,
The Washington Examiner,
20 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Chiefs beat writers Pete Sweeney and Blair Kerkhoff convened in The Star’s (mock) draft room to come up with choices for all nine picks.—
Blair Kerkhoff,
Kansas City Star,
24 Mar. 2026
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The Athletic’s Sabreena Merchant revealed her WNBA mock draft Friday.—
Steven Louis Goldstein,
New York Times,
21 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Weeks before her husband's death, she is accused of fraudulently securing a $100,000 life insurance policy for her husband with his forged signature, and then fraudulently claiming the benefits following his death, according to the charging document.—
Meredith Deliso,
ABC News,
23 Feb. 2026
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Peters now faces two felony charges for possession of a forged instrument and possession of dangerous drugs, as well as a misdemeanor charge for using a fake ID to enter a bar.—
Helen Rummel,
AZCentral.com,
10 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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While some can be used across different hair textures, lengths, curl patterns, thicknesses, colors (natural and unnatural), and concerns, many are created with specific consumers and their needs in mind.—
Lily Wohlner,
Allure,
18 Mar. 2026
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The biggest factor separating natural from unnatural results is judgment, knowing how much is enough and when to stop.—
Carlos Wolf,
Miami Herald,
12 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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In a rare public tirade against a member of their ranks, leaders insisted that Orbán must respect the 27-nation bloc's decision in December to fund Ukraine's armed forces and strained economy for the next two years.—
LORNE COOK,
Arkansas Online,
20 Mar. 2026
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Quentin Grimes scored 27 points as the 76ers ended a five-game road losing streak and won for the fourth time in their last six games playing without their two biggest stars — Joel Embiid (strained right oblique) and Tyrese Maxey (finger).—
ABC News,
ABC News,
20 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Spurious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spurious. Accessed 26 Mar. 2026.
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