simulacrum

noun

sim·​u·​la·​crum ˌsim-yə-ˈla-krəm 

-ˈlā-

plural simulacra ˌsim-yə-ˈla-krə 

-ˈlā-

also simulacrums

1

: image, representation

… a reasonable simulacrum of reality …

—Martin Mayer

2

: an insubstantial form or semblance of something : trace

Did you know?

There is more than a crumb of similarity between simulacrum and simulate: both words come from simulāre, a Latin verb meaning "to pretend, produce a fraudulent imitation of, imitate." At the root of simulāre is the Latin adjective similis, which means "having characteristics in common." Many "similar" words trace back to similis, hence the resemblance between simulacrum and familiar terms like simultaneous, simile, and of course similarity.

Examples of simulacrum in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

How Lucila gets here physically, and logistically, is intuitive enough, but the emotional journey this trip takes her on is left too vague to make a meaningful impact, as much as Diaz might conjure great life from within the film’s simulacrum of living on the margins. —Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 14 May 2026

Furthermore, two specific notions have been elaborated within the constructivist approach in media studies, namely media construct and simulacrum, theorized, respectively, by Gilles Deleuze and Jean Baudrillard. —Britannica Editors, Encyclopedia Britannica, 12 May 2026

There’s a subversive edge to this otherwise blithe simulacrum of a French salon inside the Printemps department store, with its frescoes, Languedoc marble tables and banquettes clad in Le Manach toile de Tours. —Ligaya Mishan, New York Times, 11 May 2026

But in successful experiments in the fall of 2025, scientists re-created the conditions present at the birth of planets, complete with simulacra of magma and miniature hydrogen atmospheres. —Quanta Magazine, 8 May 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, "image, representation," borrowed from Latin simulācrum "likeness, visual representation, image, statue, outward appearance of a person or thing (as in the imagination or a dream), phantom, sham appearance," from simulāre "to pretend, produce a fraudulent imitation of, imitate" + -crum, suffix of instruments (dissimilated from *-clum, going back to *-tlom) — more at simulate

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for simulacrum

• sacrum

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