as in imaginary
not real and existing only in the imagination
zoomed around the house in a make-believe car
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in fiction
Related Words
make believe
3 of 3phrase
as in pretend
to present a false appearance of
He made believe he was sick to get out of going to school.
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of make-believe
Erik Adams, The Atlantic, 10 May 2026
Kids just call it make-believe.
—Mac Barnett, Longreads, 5 May 2026
Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 21 Feb. 2026
Now, a new study suggests that such make-believe play is not a uniquely human talent, but a skill that great apes also possess.
—Amarachi Orie, CNN Money, 9 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for make-believe
Adjective
But just as much of its humor came from portraying displays of everyday decency as the stuff of Hollywood make-believe, on par with the cinematic catharsis of a high-stakes Damon vehicle.
—Erik Adams, The Atlantic, 10 May 2026
Kids just call it make-believe.
—Mac Barnett, Longreads, 5 May 2026
Noun
Park Güell is an almost make-believe landscape, home to Barcelona’s famous mosaic lizard—the image on a thousand postcards—plus spiral towers that look like fairground slides.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 21 Feb. 2026
Now, a new study suggests that such make-believe play is not a uniquely human talent, but a skill that great apes also possess.
—Amarachi Orie, CNN Money, 9 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for make-believe
Recent Examples of Synonyms for make-believe
Adjective
-
Someone needs to tell both Salley and her extraneous E to get the hell off my imaginary husband.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
3 June 2026
-
Katie Dippold shaped the show from its very beginnings by way of her passion for both horror and comedy, Hiro Murai is a quiet artist who carries a big imaginary stick.—
Stephen Root,
IndieWire,
3 June 2026
Noun
-
Here are this week’s Independent Press Top 40 Bestsellers for fiction, based on sales in hundreds of independent bookstores nationwide, generously provided by the American Booksellers Association.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
11 June 2026
-
Drawing on generations of Chinatown family lore and silences, See turns China City’s vanished streets and her ancestors’ immigrant gambles into a historical fiction layered with stories of survival and belonging.—
Emily St. Martin,
Los Angeles Times,
11 June 2026
Adjective
-
The Jurassic Park screenwriter notes that aliens, both real and fictional, might exist entirely outside of the bounds of human comprehension.—
Wesley Stenzel,
Entertainment Weekly,
12 June 2026
-
What was the challenge of making this fictional band’s stardom believable — the charisma, the presence on stage, the discography?—
Yvonne Villarreal,
Los Angeles Times,
12 June 2026
Noun
-
Perhaps nowhere is the convergence between Formula E and road-car development more obvious than simulation.—
James Morris,
Forbes.com,
6 June 2026
-
As his research evolved, so did his interest in how immersive systems could support education, empathy, creativity, and collaboration beyond simulation and operational training environments.—
Lyssanoel Frater,
USA Today,
4 June 2026
Adjective
-
However, operators often hide behind fictitious or stolen identities and fail to comply with cease-and-desist letters; meanwhile, hosting servers are often untraceable, shielded by anonymization techniques or by being located in countries where legal enforcement is extremely difficult.—
Emma Woollacott,
Forbes.com,
27 May 2026
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He is charged with one count of unlawful voting by aliens and one count of the procurement, casting, or tabulation of ballots that are known to be materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent under state law.—
Louis Casiano,
FOXNews.com,
19 May 2026
Noun
-
The main aim, however, was not to improve the intellect but to live in imitation of Christ.—
Peter Wehner,
The Atlantic,
10 June 2026
-
There’s even a great scene in Jaws when Scheider is just sitting with his son and his son starts doing imitations of him at the dinner table.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
10 June 2026
Adjective
-
The site tells you, in simple terms, whether the dog — or any other animal, real or mythical — makes it out alive.—
Cody Godwin,
USA Today,
12 June 2026
-
There are also hopper toys that defy the typical ball design in favor of whimsical animals and mythical creatures.—
BestReviews,
Chicago Tribune,
12 June 2026
Noun
-
There’s also programming planned across the weekend, including a cosplay catwalk for people to show off their work, an X-Men improv show, and panels where people can learn to draw Star Wars characters or hear discussions about disability representation in comics.—
Charlotte Observer,
Charlotte Observer,
11 June 2026
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Unlike venture capital firms that often seek significant ownership stakes and board representation, crowdfunding investors typically take much smaller positions, allowing founders to preserve more equity and autonomy.—
Melissa Houston,
Forbes.com,
11 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Make-believe.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/make-believe. Accessed 14 Jun. 2026.
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