1,400 new words in our dictionary! — Parasocial, glow-up, promposal & more
1,400 new words in our dictionary! — More

pretends

verb

present tense third-person singular of pretend
1
as in poses
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

Relevance
2
as in assumes
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

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of pretends Even a tween or teen who pretends not to enjoy Advent calendars anymore can’t resist the allure of discovering which emotional support pal will pop out. — Chaunie Brusie, Parents, 17 Sep. 2026 However, because that group is about 50% white, Dan Le Batard has an issue — or pretends to. — Bobby Burack Outkick, FOXNews.com, 17 Sep. 2026 Life after prison is punitive; in prison, no one pretends otherwise. — Literary Hub, 9 Sep. 2026 At one point, though, Jon Hamm does the voice of the mayor but there’s a robot who pretends to be him and is essentially wearing a mayor-skin suit. — Marah Eakin, Vulture, 21 Aug. 2026 And Brand New Day pretends to tell that story, for about 20 minutes. — David Sims, The Atlantic, 30 July 2026 Ariane lies to him and pretends to be an experienced dame and never reveals her real name. — Air Mail, 18 July 2026 The show only pretends to be organized around romantic couples. — Lillian Fishman, New Yorker, 27 June 2026 Scary Movie 6 spoofed the horror flick by turning the terrifying Christmas mall massacre scene into a laugh out loud moment with Cindy being present when Art the Clown pretends to be a mall Santa. — Caroline Blair, PEOPLE, 10 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pretends
  1. poses
  2. assumes
  3. plays
  4. simulates
  5. acts
  6. professes
  7. dissembles
  8. feigns
Verb
  • In the first slide, Joanna poses for a selfie during a scenic hike as Chip smiles big while standing behind her.
    — Natalia Senanayake, PEOPLE, 21 Sep. 2026
  • That should drive major upside to shares of NexGen, even though the project is far from finished and poses risks, per JPMorgan.
    — Liz Napolitano, CNBC, 21 Sep. 2026
Definition of poses
Verb
  • That answer assumes the problem sits somewhere downstream of the room.
    — Shawn Cole, Forbes.com, 22 Sep. 2026
  • The bank assumes every 1 million barrels per day of supply lost adds about $4 to the futures price, Kaneva said.
    — Spencer Kimball, CNBC, 17 Sep. 2026
Definition of assumes
Verb
  • This time, Miles Teller plays the father, an out-of-work engineer who is convinced by his ex-cop brother (Adam Driver) to go into business with a group of Russian importers working out of Gowanus.
    — Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 21 Sep. 2026
  • Then, two plays later Baugh burst through the line and outran everybody for a 33-yard TD and 27-17 lead.
    — Mike Bianchi, The Orlando Sentinel, 20 Sep. 2026
Definition of plays
Verb
  • Here, what lies indoors simulates the beauty of the natural world.
    — Carrie Honaker, Condé Nast Traveler, 8 Sep. 2026
  • The upcoming 2027 model will also be the first to feature E-Shift, an optional system that simulates the gear shifts of a combustion engine.
    — Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of simulates
Verb
  • Beck was playing a shabby, malnourished musician living in a shack who acts as an emissary of a weird celebrity cult.
    — Josephine Reisman, Vulture, 24 Sep. 2026
  • Trusting that the agent has the full picture, the team acts on it confidently, moving the majority of ad spend to TikTok.
    — Tobin Thomas, Forbes.com, 23 Sep. 2026
Definition of acts
Verb
  • In the following episode, Maggie professes her love to Lizzie.
    — Emma Banks, PEOPLE, 18 Sep. 2026
  • The exhibit, which professes to illustrate storytelling through art in its earliest manifestations, is a jarring introduction to a museum that houses 1,300 original works.
    — Culture Critic, Los Angeles Times, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of professes
Verb
  • With his multi-instrumentalist bandmates, PJ Moore and co-songwriter Robert Bell, Buchanan zooms into these exchanges to prolong them or dissembles them into jagged pieces that leave the bigger picture to us.
    — Sam Sodomsky, Pitchfork, 1 Feb. 2026
Definition of dissembles
Verb
  • Linney’s Guardian tries to draw out some resentment from her new candidate, but John expresses (or feigns) sympathy for Hal, who was betrayed by his father figure Sinestro, an experience John likens to his own complicated upbringing.
    — Siddhant Adlakha, Vulture, 31 Aug. 2026
  • The heavy side part feigns an almost asymmetrical look, which offsets heaviness on the ends and frames the face in a fun way.
    — Kaitlyn Yarborough, Southern Living, 16 June 2026
Definition of feigns

Browse Nearby Words

pretending
pretends
pretense
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Pretends.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pretends. Accessed 26 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of confabulate

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 25
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of the words cracker fly and sale arranged in a triangle with the word fire in the middle
Triple Play Quiz Find the word that pairs with each of the three g...
See All