make-believe

1 of 2

noun

make-be·​lieve ˈmāk-bə-ˌlēv 

variants or less commonly make-belief

ˈmāk-bə-ˌlēf 

: a pretending that what is not real is real

a fiction writer's childish willingness to immerse himself in make-believe

—John Updike

make-believe

2 of 2

adjective

: imaginary, pretended

Synonyms

Adjective

• chimerical
• chimeric
• fabulous
• fanciful
• fantasied
• fantastic
• fantastical
• fictional
• fictitious
• ideal
• imaginal
• imaginary
• imagined
• invented
• made-up
• mythical
• mythic
• notional
• phantasmal
• phantasmic
• phantom
• pretend
• unreal
• visionary

Examples of make-believe in a Sentence

Adjective

zoomed around the house in a make-believe car

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Acting is ultimately unfettered make-believe, and Adams returns to that most basic and essential form of play in her work. —Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 8 Sep. 2024

Still, what Ana sees on screen will slowly seep into her reality, blurring the division between the fate of the misunderstood monster of make-believe, and the actions of those near to her. —Carlos Aguilar, Los Angeles Times, 31 Aug. 2024

Adjective

Yet in the past, intimate scenes in theater, film and television were rarely treated with the same mindfulness as a make-believe duel. —Julie Hinds, Detroit Free Press, 17 Mar. 2023

The internet provided a fertile new stage for my proclivity for make-believe. —Kira Homsher, Longreads, 14 Mar. 2023

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1794, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

1806, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

make-believe

1 of 2 noun

make-be·​lieve

ˈmāk-bə-ˌlēv

: a pretending to be another person or character (as in the play of children)

make-believe

2 of 2 adjective

: imaginary

was only a make-believe lion