variants
or pretences
1
as in facades
a display of emotion or behavior that is insincere or intended to deceive
her display of bravado was just a pretense
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in rights
an entitlement to something
this book on gardening makes no pretense at completeness
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of pretenses
While some of the women who came here willingly embraced ISIS ideology and passed it on to their children, many others say they were trafficked or lured to the region through ignorance or under false pretenses.
—
Jane Arraf, NPR, 11 Apr. 2026
Court records said Dintaman, 47, pleaded guilty last October to one count each of conspiracy to commit false pretenses over $100,000, uttering and publishing, forgery and using a computer to commit a crime.
—Nick Lentz, CBS News, 5 Apr. 2026
And Trump, of course, is not—despite his pretenses otherwise—the sole decider here.
—David Frum, The Atlantic, 25 Mar. 2026
She is also charged with one count of embezzlement from a vulnerable adult of between $1,000 and $20,000 and one count of false pretenses of between $1,000 and $20,000.
—Paul Egan, Freep.com, 28 Jan. 2026
Toronto might be considered the New York City of Canada, but Bo Bichette is under no pretenses that playing for the Blue Jays is comparable to playing for one of the baseball teams in the Big Apple.
—Abbey Mastracco, New York Daily News, 21 Jan. 2026
Aurora Municipal Court Judge Brian Whitney issued an order last year pausing more than 300 cases in which attorneys challenged issues under the same pretenses as those before the Supreme Court.
—Sam Tabachnik, Denver Post, 16 Jan. 2026
They were booked into Contra Costa County jail on charges of grand theft of an animal, theft by false pretenses and conspiracy.
—Jason Green, Mercury News, 31 Dec. 2025
The audience meets Charles, who is completing yet another stint in jail, this time for false pretenses and evading arrest.
—Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 6 Nov. 2025
Jane Arraf, NPR, 11 Apr. 2026
Court records said Dintaman, 47, pleaded guilty last October to one count each of conspiracy to commit false pretenses over $100,000, uttering and publishing, forgery and using a computer to commit a crime.
—Nick Lentz, CBS News, 5 Apr. 2026
And Trump, of course, is not—despite his pretenses otherwise—the sole decider here.
—David Frum, The Atlantic, 25 Mar. 2026
She is also charged with one count of embezzlement from a vulnerable adult of between $1,000 and $20,000 and one count of false pretenses of between $1,000 and $20,000.
—Paul Egan, Freep.com, 28 Jan. 2026
Toronto might be considered the New York City of Canada, but Bo Bichette is under no pretenses that playing for the Blue Jays is comparable to playing for one of the baseball teams in the Big Apple.
—Abbey Mastracco, New York Daily News, 21 Jan. 2026
Aurora Municipal Court Judge Brian Whitney issued an order last year pausing more than 300 cases in which attorneys challenged issues under the same pretenses as those before the Supreme Court.
—Sam Tabachnik, Denver Post, 16 Jan. 2026
They were booked into Contra Costa County jail on charges of grand theft of an animal, theft by false pretenses and conspiracy.
—Jason Green, Mercury News, 31 Dec. 2025
The audience meets Charles, who is completing yet another stint in jail, this time for false pretenses and evading arrest.
—Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 6 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pretenses
Noun
-
Webbing from grand facades were narrow streets where cats sunned in doorways and artisans claimed corners for their craft, unfolding a space of inclusive second chances.—
Marlise Kast-Myers,
Boston Herald,
12 Apr. 2026
-
Completed around 1570 in northern Italy, the Villa Rotonda features symmetrical facades and harmonious proportions that have been equated with Renaissance humanism and rationalism.—
Kevin D. Murphy,
The Conversation,
10 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
At this point, Lobo said the Sparks, who also have exclusive rights to re-sign All-Star guard Kelsey Plum through a core-qualifying offer, should lean into rebuilding as a championship contender through free agency rather than the draft.—
John Davis,
Daily News,
12 Apr. 2026
-
The Cuban government announced the pardon of 2,000 prisoners earlier this month, but human-rights organizations said no political prisoners have been released so far.—
Nora Gámez Torres,
Miami Herald,
12 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
By the time my story about him was published in the November 2023 issue of Vanity Fair, Aryeh Dodelson, and all of his guises, had disappeared from the face of the earth.—
Nate Freeman,
Vanity Fair,
3 Apr. 2026
-
In its many guises, idolatry has survived, despite regular and often cataclysmic proof of its dangers, for centuries and many people will consider a much-larger-than-life golden statue of a president to be perfectly splendid.—
Culture Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
1 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
According to Donelon, fraudulent-accident claims relating to big-rig collisions increased the average yearly insurance costs for each family in Louisiana by as much as six hundred dollars.—
Patrick Radden Keefe,
New Yorker,
13 Apr. 2026
-
Chip Roy on his campaign Roy rejected Middleton's claims about his record in an interview with CBS News Texas.—
Jack Fink
April 12,
CBS News,
12 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Currently, the Northeast is reporting the most ER visits for tick bites, followed by the Midwest, Southeast, West and South Central regions, respectively, CDC data shows.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
16 Apr. 2026
-
So far this year, nearly 70 million filers have received tax returns, agency data shows.—
Mary Cunningham,
CBS News,
15 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Traditionally, Oscars hosts have been at their best when puncturing the pretensions of the stars in attendance, but for the most part, host Conan O’Brien bought into their sense of their own righteousness.—
Peter Tonguette,
The Washington Examiner,
20 Mar. 2026
-
By the early 1950s, many clerics had come to see the Pahlavi monarchy, for all its secular pretensions, as a manageable partner.—
Bobby Ghosh,
Time,
5 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The 79th annual Tony Awards airs on CBS (steams on Paramount+) from Radio City Music Hall on Sunday, June 7.—
Greg Evans,
Deadline,
9 Apr. 2026
-
The Drew Barrymore Show airs weekdays on CBS.—
Emlyn Travis,
Entertainment Weekly,
9 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
This catabolism works directly against muscle improvement goals, compromising both the strength needed for challenging poses and the flexibility that comes from healthy, elastic muscle fibers.—
William Jones,
Ascend Agency,
13 Apr. 2026
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The father and son strongmen have frequently paired up to train together and have been spotted rehearsing the elegant poses that made Schwarzenegger a star.—
Emily St. Martin,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Pretenses.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pretenses. Accessed 17 Apr. 2026.
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