pretend to (something)

idiom

formal

: to claim that one has (something, such as a quality or ability)

She pretends to a deep religious devotion, but I don't believe her.

—usually used in negative statements

I don't pretend to any expertise in these matters.

Examples of pretend to (something) in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The girls, for instance, love to pretend to be a couple of irascible grannies, usually causing trouble for the people around them, but occasionally proving helpful. —Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 15 Apr. 2024

As a critic, maybe I’m supposed to pretend to that kind of finality. —James Poniewozik, New York Times, 6 Apr. 2024

Because being Beyoncé means never having to pretend to be just one thing. —Chris Willman, Variety, 29 Mar. 2024

In one incident in the writers’ room, Kilgen alleges that Schneider asked Stratton to lean over the table and pretend to be sodomized. —Tracy Brown, Los Angeles Times, 13 Mar. 2024

But Rivian can set itself apart with vehicles that are actually capable of fairly serious off-road driving, something most electric SUVs don’t even pretend to be able to handle. —Peter Valdes-Dapena, CNN, 7 Mar. 2024

To make each of their exes jealous, Bea and Ben, who secretly can’t stand each other, pretend to be madly in love at the wedding. —Jordan Moreau, Variety, 19 Mar. 2024

Even now, some modern studies used in the design of fall-detection technology rely on methods like hiring stunt actors who pretend to fall. —IEEE Spectrum, 1 Mar. 2024

For his part, Griffith says policy on homelessness is best left to others and doesn’t pretend to be the solution himself. —Luis Melecio-Zambrano, The Mercury News, 18 Feb. 2024