masquerade

noun

mas·quer·ade | \ ˌmas-kə-ˈrād

Definition of masquerade

(Entry 1 of 2)

1a : a social gathering of persons wearing masks and often fantastic costumes

b : a costume for wear at such a gathering

2 : an action or appearance that is mere disguise or show

masquerade

verb

masqueraded; masquerading

Definition of masquerade (Entry 2 of 2)

intransitive verb

1a : to disguise oneself also : to go about disguised

b : to take part in a masquerade

2 : to assume the appearance of something one is not

Other Words from masquerade Synonyms Example Sentences Learn More about masquerade

Keep scrolling for more

Examples of masquerade in a Sentence

Noun

She could not keep up the masquerade any longer. although she was deeply bored, she maintained a masquerade of polite interest as her guest droned on

Verb

He was masquerading under a false name.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

Scorpion masquerades as self-examination, which only heightens its overwrought sentimentality: Side A grapples with ego, legacy, and fame, while Side B shifts to downtempo. — Jason Parham, WIRED, "With Scorpion, #DrakeSZN Is Back—as Overwrought as Ever," 2 July 2018 The exhibit pieces together nine different performances across eight cities in six different countries, connecting Carnival and performance, masquerade, social criticism and transnationalism. — Audrey Gorden, RedEye Chicago, "8 Chicago museum exhibits to check out in May," 10 May 2017 The weekend includes a masquerade costume contests for adults and kids, a concert and cosplay photo meetups. — Shonda Talerico Dudlicek, chicagotribune.com, "The Bristol Renaissance Faire takes guests back to 1599," 13 May 2018 The shenanigans include a variety of mistaken identities, contrivances, duels and what not, ending in a Turkish masquerade. — Mark Swed, latimes.com, "A little operatic help for newspapers: ‘La Gazzetta’ couldn't be better timed," 30 June 2018 But there's another possible Easter egg: in an SNL sketch from November 2017, Pete wore a black, bunny-eared headpiece to a masquerade ball. — Hanna Lustig, Teen Vogue, "Ariana Grande and Pete Davidson's Relationship: A Timeline," 25 June 2018 However, the short's big moment occurs at a fancy masquerade ball, where Pete dons an elaborate headpiece that's a dead-ringer for Ariana's iconic Dangerous Woman bunny ears. — D. Elizabeth, Teen Vogue, "Pete Davidson's Affection for Ariana Grande Might Date Back to This 2017 SNL Sketch," 13 June 2018 First, Kuan discussed the inspiration of the piece: London’s pleasure garden concerts, which also included many other types of entertainment including street performers, acrobats, masquerades and more. — Jessica Rudman, courant.com, "HSO Wraps Up Masterworks Season With Impressive Collaboratin," 9 June 2018 Toll roads, zoos, theme parks, tequila bars and renaissance festival masquerade balls have adopted the model. — Mark Collette, Houston Chronicle, "Astros ticket buyers notice dynamic prices after World Series win," 24 May 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Nix also discussed how his firm could mask its involvement, either by masquerading as locals using fake IDs and websites or by contracting with others who could do the dirty work. — Philip Bump, Washington Post, "The CEO of the Trump 2016 data firm was recorded pitching illegal overseas campaign tactics," 19 Mar. 2018 The one-plane-swinging, funky-hat-wearing, same-club-length-using scientist masquerading as a world-class golfer was seen using a compass at the Travelers Championship. — Daniel Rapaport, SI.com, "FORE Questions: Breaking Down the New PGA Tour Schedule," 12 July 2018 Dubbed aLTEr, the researchers’ attack causes mobile devices to use a malicious domain name system server that, in turn, redirects the user to a malicious server masquerading as Hotmail. — Dan Goodin, Ars Technica, "LTE wireless connections used by billions aren’t as secure as we thought," 29 June 2018 Shows about cannibals masquerading as charismatic psychiatrists, about wisecracking zombie hunters, about ferocious Anglo-Irish gangsters who conceal razorblades in the peaks of their caps. — Joe Queenan, WSJ, "A TV Watcher’s Bid to Keep Up With the Bingers," 14 June 2018 Second-season premiere of the series from Breaking Bad star Bryan Cranston and David Shore (The Good Doctor, House) finds a new reason for Marius (Giovanni Ribisi) to keep masquerading as his former cellmate, Pete. — Ellen Gray, Philly.com, "TV picks: 'The Good Fight,' Oscars, 'Mister Rogers' tribute, and more," 1 Mar. 2018 The trio has previously masqueraded as the new-wave group the Network alongside members of Devo, and as the garage outfit Foxboro Hot Tubs. — Zack Ruskin, SFChronicle.com, "Billie Joe Armstrong performs as the Longshot, celebrates punk roots at sold-out homecoming show," 10 July 2018 There are unscrupulous online pharmacies that masquerade as Canadian drugstores. — Houston Chronicle, "Vicks VapoRub for poison ivy itch," 8 July 2018 Staying properly hydrated is vital since dehydration can masquerade as hunger. — Jennifer Franklin, Bon Appetit, "What's Up With Intermittent Fasting, and Should We Be Doing It?," 2 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'masquerade.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.