Synonyms of bogus

bogus

adjective

ˈbō-gəs 

1

as in fake

being such in appearance only and made with or manufactured from usually cheaper materials

for that price, you're only going to get furniture covered in bogus leather and not the real stuff

Synonyms & Similar Words

• fake
• faux
• synthetic
• simulated
• artificial
• false
• dummy
• imitation
• imitative
• mock
• ersatz
• sham
• manufactured
• factitious
• counterfeit
• substitute
• pretend
• mimic
• deceptive
• designer
• process
• man-made
• fraudulent
• manipulated
• misleading
• fabricated
• unauthentic
• forged
• pseudo
• engineered
• concocted
• phony
• cultured
• adulterated
• spurious
• doctored
• fudged
• feigned
• affected
• juggled
• tampered (with)
• pinchbeck
• brummagem

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• real
• genuine
• natural
• true
• legitimate
• authentic
• valuable
• bona fide
• pure
• quality
• premium
• unadulterated

2

as in counterfeit

being such in appearance only and made or manufactured with the intention of committing fraud

the "designer" watches sold on the street are usually bogus

Synonyms & Similar Words

• counterfeit
• fake
• false
• forged
• phony
• spurious
• inauthentic
• sham
• imitation
• ornamental
• snide
• synthetic
• unauthentic
• manufactured
• artificial
• deceptive
• misleading
• mock
• simulated
• dummy
• factitious
• substitute
• fabricated
• mimic
• cultured
• nonfunctioning
• delusive
• man-made

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• real
• genuine
• authentic
• bona fide
• natural
• actual
• true
• unfaked
• valid

3

as in false

lacking in natural or spontaneous quality

there was often a lot of bogus conviviality at the company's parties

Synonyms & Similar Words

• false
• mock
• fake
• unnatural
• strained
• exaggerated
• pseudo
• mechanical
• phony
• spurious
• artificial
• simulated
• affected
• contrived
• sham
• assumed
• plastic
• factitious
• forced
• feigned
• cute
• theatrical
• pretended
• unreal
• put-on
• hollow
• automatic
• empty
• unrealistic
• manufactured
• unauthentic
• hypocritical
• pat
• calculated
• formal
• insincere
• fabricated
• deliberate
• canned
• hokey
• concocted
• labored
• stiff
• melodramatic
• conventional
• facile
• unctuous
• wooden
• histrionic
• conscious
• impersonal
• stylized
• mealy
• rigid
• cultivated
• premeditated
• two-faced
• cutesy
• artful
• mealymouthed
• overdone
• genteel
• simpering
• double-dealing
• inflexible
• studied
• mincing
• overacted
• goody-goody
• overrefined
• left-handed

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• genuine
• real
• true
• natural
• spontaneous
• unaffected
• authentic
• realistic
• artless
• right
• bona fide
• sincere
• honest
• easy
• ingenuous
• unforced
• unfeigned
• uncontrived
• smooth
• effortless
• unconscious
• impromptu
• instinctive
• impulsive
• extemporaneous
• unpretending
• unstudied
• unrehearsed
• unprompted

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of bogus

The bogus surgeon, Felipe Hoyos-Foronda, 40, is expected to receive a five-to-15-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to performing the deadly medical procedure that claimed the life of María Paz Peñaloza Cabrera on March 28, 2025, Queens prosecutors said. — Colin Mixson, New York Daily News, 18 June 2026

Here are details on the sweet, tiny bites of unctuous decadence, and the fluffy, bogus cones best left in the freezer. — Jolene Thym, Mercury News, 3 June 2026

There can be bogus aspects in that data. — Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 1 June 2026

But critics say some players associated with the movement also undermine health by lending an air of legitimacy to bogus treatments. — Phoebe Quinton, AJC.com, 1 June 2026

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