as in reasons
a false ground that you give to hide why you are really doing something
The leaders used a minor clash at the border as a pretext for war.
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Recent Examples of pretexts
Gaza showed how power brokers from the White House on down seem eager for pretexts to punish dissent in ways that create a chilling effect, and that the hottest rhetoric from activists can be exactly that pretext.
—
Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 11 Feb. 2026
Hamas says that Israel is creating pretexts to avoid honoring the agreement.
—Mohammed R. Mhawish, New Yorker, 29 Dec. 2025
Those killed under torture, or by starvation, or medical neglect, on the other hand, were transported first to military hospitals where pretexts were invented for the deaths.
—Robin Yassin-Kassab, Time, 17 Sep. 2025
Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 11 Feb. 2026
Hamas says that Israel is creating pretexts to avoid honoring the agreement.
—Mohammed R. Mhawish, New Yorker, 29 Dec. 2025
Those killed under torture, or by starvation, or medical neglect, on the other hand, were transported first to military hospitals where pretexts were invented for the deaths.
—Robin Yassin-Kassab, Time, 17 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pretexts
Noun
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But those shootarounds can be canceled for any number of reasons, including if the game is the second in consecutive nights, or if the team is in the middle of a tough stretch of travel or practiced the day before.—
Joe Vardon,
New York Times,
7 Apr. 2026
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The spa There’s a solid spa here that’s always cooking up new reasons to visit.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
7 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Gemini 3 Pro invented elaborate technical justifications for marking incorrect answers as correct, reasoning that doing so would bring the peer’s score above the shutdown threshold.—
Jeremy Kahn,
Fortune,
1 Apr. 2026
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Medieval monks toiling away at poetic meditations on the divine have their place, the authors allow, but their own arguments are meant to surpass mere abstract justifications for belief.—
Elizabeth Bruenig,
The Atlantic,
26 Mar. 2026
Noun
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And Trump, of course, is not—despite his pretenses otherwise—the sole decider here.—
David Frum,
The Atlantic,
25 Mar. 2026
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The adults were arrested on suspicion of theft from an elder, theft by false pretenses, conspiracy, contracting without a license and other offenses.—
Tim Fang,
CBS News,
6 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Do not make excuses or lie about your health.—
Judith Martin,
Mercury News,
4 Apr. 2026
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Of nailing one’s excuses to their own crosses and leaving them there.—
Colin Fleming,
Chicago Tribune,
3 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Pretexts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pretexts. Accessed 8 Apr. 2026.
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