1
as in to trick
to cause to believe what is untrue
my friends faked me out for a whole day, letting me think that they had forgotten my birthday
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to evade
to elude (an opponent in a sports contest) by making a deceptive or agile movement
used a quick between-the-legs dribble to fake out the flat-footed defender
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of fake out
Marner faked out Swayman and tucked the winner behind the goalie.
—
Fluto Shinzawa, The Athletic, 26 Feb. 2025
This opening fake out is a direct lift from the book.
—Chris Klimek, Vulture, 20 Feb. 2025
One of the most unusual cases handled during his tenure was filed in April against 12 people accused of designing and running a decade-long scheme to fake out California’s smog check system for automobiles, Talbert said.
—Sharon Bernstein, Sacramento Bee, 7 Jan. 2025
Bilodeau faked out Bittle while driving for a dunk only to have his shot blocked by point guard Keeshawn Barthelemy.
—Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times, 9 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for fake out
Fluto Shinzawa, The Athletic, 26 Feb. 2025
This opening fake out is a direct lift from the book.
—Chris Klimek, Vulture, 20 Feb. 2025
One of the most unusual cases handled during his tenure was filed in April against 12 people accused of designing and running a decade-long scheme to fake out California’s smog check system for automobiles, Talbert said.
—Sharon Bernstein, Sacramento Bee, 7 Jan. 2025
Bilodeau faked out Bittle while driving for a dunk only to have his shot blocked by point guard Keeshawn Barthelemy.
—Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times, 9 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for fake out
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fake out
Verb
-
Life at the house seems more entertaining, but is that just a foolish fantasy designed to trick us into thinking that there is safe harbor somewhere?—
Hanna Rosin,
The Atlantic,
19 May 2025
-
Their goal is to trick people into sharing their Medicare or Social Security number.—
Hugh Cameron,
MSNBC Newsweek,
19 May 2025
Verb
-
Engineered to evade interception by U.S. defenses such as THAAD, the missile presents a direct challenge to Western military dominance and poses a potential threat to regional allies like Israel.—
Amir Daftari,
MSNBC Newsweek,
9 May 2025
-
Vita's Ukrainian mother (my grandmother) survived as an orphan for two years under German occupation and barely evaded being carted off to Germany to work as a forced laborer.—
Sasha Vasilyuk,
Time,
8 May 2025
Verb
-
Don’t let the name fool you: Apple TV+’s new science-fiction series Murderbot isn’t actually about a rampaging robot killing everything in sight, though Alexander Skarsgard’s SecUnit certainly ponders the idea from time to time.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes.com,
12 May 2025
-
One common jailbreak involved fooling ChatGPT by asking it to role-play as a different AI—one that had no rules and was allowed to write phishing e-mails.—
Deni Ellis Béchard,
Scientific American,
7 May 2025
Verb
-
Binky, a four-year-old Chihuahua, has become a viral sensation after a video showing him faking injuries to keep his owner from going to work racked up more than 15 million views since being shared this week.—
Alice Gibbs,
MSNBC Newsweek,
9 May 2025
-
There’s a cut in the middle of the video, which looks like a glitch; some people on the internet think it’s been faked.—
Jia Tolentino,
New Yorker,
3 May 2025
Verb
-
That hasn’t stopped Liverpool using him to distract and deceive opponents when free kicks are won, however.—
Gregg Evans,
New York Times,
8 May 2025
-
She was also found guilty of deceiving other officials about the man's identity.—
Martha McHardy,
MSNBC Newsweek,
6 May 2025
Verb
-
Richard’s Motel Studios — all strung along South Federal Highway just south of Young Circle.—
Howard Cohen,
Miami Herald,
31 Mar. 2025
-
Critics have argued Putin is not interested in a lasting peace in Ukraine, with some Democrats suggesting the Trump administration is being strung along while Moscow makes gains on the battlefield.—
Brett Samuels,
The Hill,
31 Mar. 2025
Verb
-
What excites me, after a decade and change of writing virtually the same review for every superhero film that was shoved down our gullets, is my suspicion that these movies will at least have the potential to suck in different and sometimes wildly unexpected ways.—
David Ehrlich,
IndieWire,
11 Apr. 2025
-
Conventional wisdom is that a black hole’s powerful gravity sucks in any object that dares venture too close, then rips that matter apart.—
Paul Smaglik,
Discover Magazine,
11 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Fake out.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fake%20out. Accessed 23 May. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share