pretended
adjective
pre·tend·ed
pri-ˈten-dəd 
: professed or avowed but not genuine
pretended affection
pretendedly
adverb
Examples of pretended in a Sentence
he shows a pretended affection for his girlfriend's cat
hoped that his pretended interest in classical music would impress the boss
Recent Examples on the Web
The woman is long gone, so Freer has to imagine her consent — in a history so full of gaps, coercion, and disappearance, a pretended connection is better than none at all.
—
Helen Shaw, Vulture, 28 Mar. 2022
What most activates Dunn’s rage is the misogyny that only deepened amid all the pretended freedoms of the counterculture.
—Sam Sacks, WSJ, 11 Nov. 2022
No, seriously: People were very upset by these shoes, or at least pretended to be.
—Heather Wilhelm, National Review, 31 Aug. 2017
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Helen Shaw, Vulture, 28 Mar. 2022
What most activates Dunn’s rage is the misogyny that only deepened amid all the pretended freedoms of the counterculture.
—Sam Sacks, WSJ, 11 Nov. 2022
No, seriously: People were very upset by these shoes, or at least pretended to be.
—Heather Wilhelm, National Review, 31 Aug. 2017
Cite this Entry
“Pretended.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pretended. Accessed 15 Jul. 2025.
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