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
make believe
2 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
as in fiction
Related Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of make-believe
Stephanie Madsen, The Conversation, 22 July 2025
Over the weekend, fan pages salivated over make-believe crossovers and posse cuts, not really considering the prospect of this being purely a solo album.
—Olivier Lafontant, Pitchfork, 21 July 2025
Julie Hinds, Detroit Free Press, 17 Mar. 2023
The internet provided a fertile new stage for my proclivity for make-believe.
—Kira Homsher, Longreads, 14 Mar. 2023
See All Example Sentences for make-believe
Adjective
Solitary play might be a lot more fun if a make-believe teammate could provide an assist, or an invisible coach could appear and shout instructions during practice.
—Stephanie Madsen, The Conversation, 22 July 2025
Over the weekend, fan pages salivated over make-believe crossovers and posse cuts, not really considering the prospect of this being purely a solo album.
—Olivier Lafontant, Pitchfork, 21 July 2025
Phrase
Yet in the past, intimate scenes in theater, film and television were rarely treated with the same mindfulness as a make-believe duel.
—Julie Hinds, Detroit Free Press, 17 Mar. 2023
The internet provided a fertile new stage for my proclivity for make-believe.
—Kira Homsher, Longreads, 14 Mar. 2023
See All Example Sentences for make-believe
Recent Examples of Synonyms for make-believe
Adjective
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Steve Young lifts his arm, holding an imaginary football, preparing to throw.—
Seth Wickersham,
The Atlantic,
8 Sep. 2025
-
Moreover, her five-letter titles refer to satellite navigation waypoints and fixes for aircraft flying in clouds or at night, that offer passage to imaginary locations defined by the interception of magnetic vectors drawn from the earth’s poles.—
Natasha Gural,
Forbes.com,
8 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Although Harold is not literary fiction’s first obsessive ruminator, what makes Muscle Man feel so plugged into the moment is how common the predicament feels.—
Jeremy Gordon,
The Atlantic,
12 Sep. 2025
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The arrow sequence, though, has a connection to video gaming, recognizably originating in a game called Helldivers 2, a science-fiction narrative similar to Robert Heinlein’s book Starship Troopers that covers fascistic themes.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
12 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
The mockumentary about a fictitious paper company in Scranton, Pennsylvania aired from 2005 to 2013.—
Lisa Respers France,
CNN Money,
12 Sep. 2025
-
The bad news about this fictitious mountainside hole-in-the-wall?—
Tim McGovern,
PEOPLE,
11 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The prediction was not based on a single model but rather on the average of multiple simulation and model runs.—
Ryan French,
Space.com,
9 Sep. 2025
-
By optimizing processes based on digital data and physically accurate models and simulations, businesses can leverage ideal materials and fine-tune layouts to ensure initial prototypes or build-outs perform optimally from the get-go.—
Marco Chiappetta,
Forbes.com,
9 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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To respond to a volatile inflation crisis, should the CEO of Burger & Bites, a fictional fast-food chain, introduce dynamic pricing to its restaurants?—
Elie Ofek,
Harvard Business Review,
14 Sep. 2025
-
College football fan favorite Fansville, a satirical episodic drama from Dr Pepper set in a fictional college town, is returning for its eighth season.—
Kristi Dosh,
Forbes.com,
13 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Sleep-mimicking anesthetics, like Dex, don’t produce a perfect imitation.—
RJ Mackenzie,
Popular Science,
3 Sep. 2025
-
The Residences’ partners insisted wood be wood, leather be leather, and plastic should never be a faux substitute because the ultra rich instantly spot imitations.—
Lilian Raji,
Forbes.com,
30 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Over at Metropolitan State University, the on-campus gallery is presenting works from five Twin Cities Latino artists working across paintings, puppetry, photography and more focused on bestiarios, or fantastical, mythical beasts.—
Jared Kaufman,
Twin Cities,
7 Sep. 2025
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Renewal Through Setback Erik Marthon Olsen of Laerdal Invest chose the phoenix, the mythical bird that rises from its own ashes.—
Francois Botha,
Forbes.com,
7 Sep. 2025
Noun
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The new location will allow Wiggam Law to support clients outside of downtown Atlanta and directly in Gwinnett County, offering legal services including audit defense, tax litigation, penalty abatement, innocent spouse relief and IRS collections representation.—
Kelly Phillips Erb,
Forbes.com,
13 Sep. 2025
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That contract, reached after the union leveraged a strike threat in 2024, included coverage of PBS Kids’ animation for the first time and triggered union representation for writers on shows like Molly of Denali and Work It Out Wombats.—
Katie Kilkenny,
HollywoodReporter,
12 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Make-believe.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/make-believe. Accessed 15 Sep. 2025.
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