1
as in mock
lacking in natural or spontaneous quality
he shows a pretended affection for his girlfriend's cat
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in fake
not being or expressing what one appears to be or express
hoped that his pretended interest in classical music would impress the boss
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in posed
to take on a false or deceptive appearance
I pretended that I didn't care that my ex had a new man in her life
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in assumed
to present a false appearance of
as if I would ever pretend illness just to take off a day from work
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of pretended
Kory Grow,
Rolling Stone,
27 June 2026
But at least the administration still pretended that justice was the point.
—
Jon Duffy,
Mercury News,
25 June 2026
At that point, prosecutors allege Spencer pretended to fall and started yelling.
—
Tess Kenny,
Chicago Tribune,
25 June 2026
The bus arrived shortly after Spencer toucher the girl, and Spencer pretended to fall and began yelling, prosecutors said.
—
Adam Harrington,
CBS News,
25 June 2026
In what prosecutors believe was a ploy to keep her boyfriend Wade Griffin, Parker pretended to be pregnant with their child.
—
Savannah Walsh,
Vanity Fair,
18 June 2026
Griffin has never pretended to be a radical innovator or a savant.
—
Gary Sernovitz,
New Yorker,
15 June 2026
In the meetup, the buyer was examining the cards, pretended to pay, sprayed the seller with pepper spray and then ran away with the cards.
—
Jazmin Alvarado,
Los Angeles Times,
12 June 2026
For years, notarios — notary publics — in Miami have pretended to be immigration lawyers, with devastating consequences, like financial ruin or deportations orders for the immigrants who trust them.
—
Syra Ortiz Blanes,
Miami Herald,
11 June 2026
Verb
Even though many Metallica fans pretended to loathe the Load albums, headbangers came out for them.
—
Kory Grow,
Rolling Stone,
27 June 2026
But at least the administration still pretended that justice was the point.
—
Jon Duffy,
Mercury News,
25 June 2026
At that point, prosecutors allege Spencer pretended to fall and started yelling.
—
Tess Kenny,
Chicago Tribune,
25 June 2026
The bus arrived shortly after Spencer toucher the girl, and Spencer pretended to fall and began yelling, prosecutors said.
—
Adam Harrington,
CBS News,
25 June 2026
In what prosecutors believe was a ploy to keep her boyfriend Wade Griffin, Parker pretended to be pregnant with their child.
—
Savannah Walsh,
Vanity Fair,
18 June 2026
Griffin has never pretended to be a radical innovator or a savant.
—
Gary Sernovitz,
New Yorker,
15 June 2026
In the meetup, the buyer was examining the cards, pretended to pay, sprayed the seller with pepper spray and then ran away with the cards.
—
Jazmin Alvarado,
Los Angeles Times,
12 June 2026
For years, notarios — notary publics — in Miami have pretended to be immigration lawyers, with devastating consequences, like financial ruin or deportations orders for the immigrants who trust them.
—
Syra Ortiz Blanes,
Miami Herald,
11 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pretended
Adjective
-
On Thursday, Gary Police Department personnel visited campers to teach about crime scene investigation and create a mock crime scene for students to solve.
-
An 11-year-old Dexter Sol Ansell is peering into his Zoom camera, hands pressed to his cheeks and mouth wide open in mock shock.
Adjective
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First was a Drug Enforcement Administration badge and ID with Horsch’s photo on it, but the ID was fake, and Horsch has never worked for the DEA, according to court documents.
-
This game preserves the difficulty of coming up with an elaborate, consistent false narrative on the spot, and the challenge of adapting that narrative on the fly when other players present convincing (and sometimes fake) counter-evidence.
Verb
-
Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota, officials are pausing data center development for one year, with vocal neighbors arguing that the risk posed by a controversial project outweigh the threat of litigation.
-
Stanhope is posed next to a young Black man presumed to be a servant of Stanhope.
Verb
-
Many business leaders assumed the semiconductor crisis ended with the pandemic.
-
The defense attorney said police automatically assumed her client was the suspect from the start.
Adjective
-
Then there’s the risk of higher frustration and strained relationships across an organization.
-
But for Chris Williams, an 18-year employee of the California Department of Education, the contentious return-to-office process may have teed up a strained relationship with downtown.
Adjective
-
Taylor Walls recorded three hits while Chandler Simpson added a double and a single.
-
Resting options include double bunk beds in back and queen bed with bamboo mattress up front.
Verb
-
For decades, oceans have acted as the planet’s main heat sink, absorbing 90% of the excess heat produced by humans burning fossil fuels.
-
And in many Indigenous societies, the color, length, and placement of fringe acted as a coat of arms, signifying one’s family, tribe, or position in the community.
Verb
-
According to Defence Express and EDR, planners simulated a strike against a target nearly 1,000 kilometers away.
-
Aaru, a two-year-old AI startup, simulated all of those voters—agents built from the kind of data the company collects, like credit card purchasing history, food-delivery orders, and demographic records—and tried to predict how the votes would be cast.
Cite this Entry
“Pretended.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pretended. Accessed 3 Jul. 2026.
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