variants
also phoney
1
as in fake
being such in appearance only and made or manufactured with the intention of committing fraud
a phony watch with a designer logo
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in bogus
lacking in natural or spontaneous quality
she always has this phony smile just before she betrays you
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in meaningless
not being or expressing what one appears to be or express
her concern for our welfare is as phony as all get-out—she just wants to know our business
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
variants
also phoney
1
as in counterfeit
an imitation that is passed off as genuine
the fancy "emerald" ring turned out to be a phony
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in sham
one who makes false claims of identity or expertise
the person who performed the liposuction operation was later discovered to be a phony
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to fake
to imitate or copy especially in order to deceive
the terrorists were able to move around the country using phonied driver's licenses
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Recent Examples of phony
Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 12 May 2025
Listen to this article A pair of phony cops pulled off a hot dog heist from a Times Square food vendor while wielding a knife early Wednesday — the latest in a string of attacks on vendors, authorities said.
—Nicholas Williams, New York Daily News, 8 May 2025
Katie Wiseman, The Indianapolis Star, 25 July 2024
His character, called The Passenger, is unpredictable, violent and has no patience for phonies, though there is an emotional key to his madness.
—Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 11 July 2024
New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 22 Apr. 2024
In fact, legislators and regulators are rolling back regulations designed to protect investors, who in this case are estimated to have lost $100 billion to phony Chinese firms.
—Gary Thompson, Philly.com, 29 Mar. 2018
See All Example Sentences for phony
Adjective
Authorities said the fraud involved overstating employee numbers and average monthly payroll, and making other phony representations.
—Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 12 May 2025
Listen to this article A pair of phony cops pulled off a hot dog heist from a Times Square food vendor while wielding a knife early Wednesday — the latest in a string of attacks on vendors, authorities said.
—Nicholas Williams, New York Daily News, 8 May 2025
Noun
The comment was Vance's response after Beshear had previously called him a phony and not a Kentuckian and implied heavily that nepotism was the only reason Beshear is governor.
—Katie Wiseman, The Indianapolis Star, 25 July 2024
His character, called The Passenger, is unpredictable, violent and has no patience for phonies, though there is an emotional key to his madness.
—Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 11 July 2024
Verb
What constitutes the crime is to phony up business accounting records to disguise the payments.
—New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 22 Apr. 2024
In fact, legislators and regulators are rolling back regulations designed to protect investors, who in this case are estimated to have lost $100 billion to phony Chinese firms.
—Gary Thompson, Philly.com, 29 Mar. 2018
See All Example Sentences for phony
Recent Examples of Synonyms for phony
Adjective
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Later, it's revealed that Phelps didn't die at all, and his fake death was a setup to frame Ethan.—
EW.com,
EW.com,
24 May 2025
-
Billy Joel cancels concert tour dates and reveals health diagnosis Cop partied, ran races while collecting $600,000 for fake injury, DA says In: New Jersey New Jersey State Police Genetic Genealogy Kerry Breen Kerry Breen is a news editor at CBSNews.com.—
May 23,
CBS News,
23 May 2025
Adjective
-
While many experts have deemed the lawsuit to be bogus, CBS parent Paramount Global has begun discussing a settlement, especially as company chair Shari Redstone looks to complete a merger with Skydance Media — a deal that will require signoff from Carr’s FCC.—
Liam Reilly,
CNN Money,
15 May 2025
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Co-conspirators then helped the clients prepare false federal income tax returns that fraudulently deducted the bogus business expenses, which federal authorities said were just payments to the company.—
Angie DiMichele,
Sun Sentinel,
14 May 2025
Adjective
-
And yet, in certain ways, the film doesn’t go as deep as Orwell’s observations; its choice of illustrative material generally hews to contemporary party lines, even while showcasing wise words that render such distinctions all but meaningless.—
Sheri Linden,
HollywoodReporter,
17 May 2025
-
Passion projects are paused indefinitely, tasks feel meaningless, and things at work that used to make sense now just seem pointless.—
Lindsay Kohler,
Forbes.com,
16 May 2025
Noun
-
The ever-improving quality of counterfeits further threatens retail integrity and industry accountability.—
Cassell Ferere,
Forbes,
5 Jan. 2025
-
Heidt noted that the logo placement on a counterfeit may look off or that the logo may have a bleed.—
Thao Nguyen,
USA TODAY,
28 Nov. 2024
Noun
-
Meanwhile, Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency has been exposed as nothing more than a sham.—
Paul Du Quenoy,
MSNBC Newsweek,
19 May 2025
-
Despite a unilateral three-day ceasefire declared by Russia beginning May 8, Ukraine has rejected it as a sham.—
Katya Soldak,
Forbes.com,
9 May 2025
Verb
-
Trump could be the right leader to forge compromise.—
J. Tedford Tyler,
Time,
17 May 2025
-
Work smarter not harder Many new CE leaders overestimate their internal ability and capacity to forge new partnerships to improve supply chains.—
London School of Economics,
Forbes.com,
16 May 2025
Adjective
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Now their weird discomfort with disease—and their outré views on cancer in particular—is being refracted through a sea of false, indecent speculations.—
Benjamin Mazer,
The Atlantic,
19 May 2025
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This discrepancy hindered the adoption of BI, which might further damage AI by generating models that are trained with false assumptions and generate erroneous predictions.—
Artyom Keydunov,
Forbes.com,
19 May 2025
Adjective
-
This could certainly change if the Rockets land a certain French teenager in this year's draft lottery, but the first half of 2022-23 has assuaged some concerns about the long-term viability of a pseudo-twin-towers in the starting lineup with Jabari Smith flanked by Alperen Şengün.—
Michael Shapiro,
Chron,
15 Jan. 2023
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In a code division scheme, each call is encoded in a random or pseudo-random sequencing, and receivers at the other end are equipped to decode their own calls.—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
27 Apr. 2021
Cite this Entry
“Phony.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/phony. Accessed 29 May. 2025.
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