as in palming off
to offer (something fake, useless, or inferior) as genuine, useful, or valuable
the con man tried to pass off a piece of blue glass as a sapphire
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Recent Examples of passing off
Adam Gordon, the book’s protagonist, is always passing off someone else’s language as his own.
—
Andrew Marantz, New Yorker, 5 Apr. 2026
But the overall reality is simple, lying in the hands of the head man still pulling the strings despite passing off the play-calling reins.
—Luca Evans, Denver Post, 15 Mar. 2026
Ocean carriers are reacting in kind, passing off the war-risk premiums to their customers.
—Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 2 Mar. 2026
Gimbel attributed the practice of AI washing to companies passing off diminished margins and revenue from a failure to effectively navigate cautious consumers and geopolitical tensions to AI.
—Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 19 Feb. 2026
Williams and Storrie, both in official white, pink and yellow fits, had their own moment as torchbearers, with Williams passing off the flame to Storrie.
—Nicole Fell, HollywoodReporter, 25 Jan. 2026
In the video, Prince Louis, the youngest son of Prince William and Princess Kate, can be seen holding the toy, before passing off the beaver masquerading as Santa Claus to his father.
—Eleanor Dearman, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 30 Dec. 2025
One tactic smugglers use is passing off African greys as species that can still be legally exported, such as green and red-fronted parrots.
—Rene Ebersole, Rolling Stone, 18 Nov. 2025
Eleanor ends up passing off the story of Bessie surviving a concentration camp in Poland as her own.
—Dina Kaur, AZCentral.com, 25 Sep. 2025
Andrew Marantz, New Yorker, 5 Apr. 2026
But the overall reality is simple, lying in the hands of the head man still pulling the strings despite passing off the play-calling reins.
—Luca Evans, Denver Post, 15 Mar. 2026
Ocean carriers are reacting in kind, passing off the war-risk premiums to their customers.
—Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 2 Mar. 2026
Gimbel attributed the practice of AI washing to companies passing off diminished margins and revenue from a failure to effectively navigate cautious consumers and geopolitical tensions to AI.
—Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 19 Feb. 2026
Williams and Storrie, both in official white, pink and yellow fits, had their own moment as torchbearers, with Williams passing off the flame to Storrie.
—Nicole Fell, HollywoodReporter, 25 Jan. 2026
In the video, Prince Louis, the youngest son of Prince William and Princess Kate, can be seen holding the toy, before passing off the beaver masquerading as Santa Claus to his father.
—Eleanor Dearman, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 30 Dec. 2025
One tactic smugglers use is passing off African greys as species that can still be legally exported, such as green and red-fronted parrots.
—Rene Ebersole, Rolling Stone, 18 Nov. 2025
Eleanor ends up passing off the story of Bessie surviving a concentration camp in Poland as her own.
—Dina Kaur, AZCentral.com, 25 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for passing off
Verb
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Trump continued ranting as Welker tried to fit in more questions about the weaponization fund, but the president said he was done with the interview, thanking Welker for the time and wishing her a good day before walking away.—
Claire Carter,
The Washington Examiner,
7 June 2026
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In fact, we were not involved in this one, even though Cannes was naturally chosen as a sounding board, because this is where the debate would receive strong attention — Cannes always offers an exceptional platform to those wishing to bring an issue into the public sphere.—
Elsa Keslassy,
Variety,
4 June 2026
Verb
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The global economy in tumult, inflicting financial pain on American citizens that will linger even as oil prices decline.—
Daniel B. Shapiro,
The Atlantic,
17 June 2026
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Varley, a teacher, was also found guilty of inflicting grievous bodily harm; four counts of cruelty to a person under 16; ten counts of taking indecent images of a child; two counts of possessing indecent images of a child; and one count of distributing an indecent image of a child.—
KC Baker,
PEOPLE,
15 June 2026
Verb
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For most of American history, the institutions capable of imposing orthodoxy were governments, churches, political parties, universities, and major media organizations.—
Joseph Andrew,
Forbes.com,
13 June 2026
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Most of the film’s cast is expected to attend the glitzy world premiere at the festival later this evening, taking place at Taormina’s imposing Greek theater.—
Rafa Sales Ross,
Variety,
13 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Passing off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/passing%20off. Accessed 22 Jun. 2026.
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