as in pretends
to present a false appearance of
I would never feign illness just to get out of a test
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Recent Examples of feigns
Someone who’s really living the Andrew Tate-like lifestyle Jacob only feigns is his bestie Cameron (Dylan Playfair).
—
Dennis Harvey, Variety, 7 Aug. 2025
The second man with a flail steps forward and feigns a move.
—Miguel Torres, AZCentral.com, 16 May 2025
Dennis Harvey, Variety, 7 Aug. 2025
The second man with a flail steps forward and feigns a move.
—Miguel Torres, AZCentral.com, 16 May 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for feigns
Verb
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But nobody pretends that number is reliable.—
Jeffrey Kluger,
Time,
31 Oct. 2025
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Each night on her ongoing Short n’ Sweet tour Carpenter pretends to arrest a member of the crowd.—
Emily Zemler,
Rolling Stone,
24 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Yet his rhetoric assumes that Jewish identity is synonymous with privilege, that Jewish concerns are secondary — or suspect.—
David Moore,
New York Daily News,
11 Jan. 2026
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The literary record assumes the same.—
Dan Turello,
New Yorker,
10 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Today's test simulates a frontal collision where the cars are slightly offset from each other.—
Camila Domonoske,
NPR,
16 Dec. 2025
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Another installation simulates the interior of Aquarius Reef Base, complete with bunks, galley tables and stories from Scripps Oceanography researchers like Dale Stokes and Jim Leichter, who’ve completed multiple missions there.—
Michael James Rocha,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
7 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Feigns.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/feigns. Accessed 16 Jan. 2026.
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