phony

1 of 4

adjective

pho·​ny ˈfō-nē 

variants or less commonly phoney

phonier; phoniest

: not genuine or real: such as

a(1)

: intended to deceive or mislead

(2)

: intended to defraud : counterfeit

b

: arousing suspicion : probably dishonest

something phony about the story

c

: having no basis in fact : fictitious

phony publicity stories

d

: false, sham

a phony name

e

: making a false show: such as

(1)

: hypocritical

(2)

: specious

has a phony poetic elegance

—New Republic

phonily

ˈfō-ni-lē 

adverb

phoniness

ˈfō-nē-nəs 

noun

phony

2 of 4

noun

variants or less commonly phoney

plural phonies also phoneys

: one that is phony

phony

3 of 4

verb

phonied; phonying

transitive verb

: counterfeit, fake

—often used with up

a paper phonied up on the spur of the moment

—William Faulkner

-phony

4 of 4

noun combining form

variants or less commonly -phonia

1

: sound

telephony

2

usually -phonia : speech disorder of a (specified) type

dysphonia

Synonyms

Adjective

• bogus
• counterfeit
• fake
• false
• forged
• inauthentic
• queer
• sham
• snide
• spurious
• unauthentic

Noun

• counterfeit
• fake
• forgery
• hoax
• humbug
• sham

Verb

• counterfeit
• fake
• forge

Examples of phony in a Sentence

Adjective

a phony watch with a designer logo

she always has this phony smile just before she betrays you

Noun

According to him, politics is full of phonies.

I don't think she ever meant to help us. What a phony!

Verb

the terrorists were able to move around the country using phonied driver's licenses

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Often, the people targeted had already sought relief from their real lenders, and were expecting a return call — making these phony pitches seem more plausible. —Lew Sichelman, Miami Herald, 30 Apr. 2025

See, the way Ray figures it, Rick heard about Ray and Manny’s phony DEA operation in prison and facilitated a setup. —Andy Andersen, Vulture, 25 Apr. 2025

Noun

For a Gen X-er raised on movies that skewered phonies and wannabes, the thought of being a poser was, in the end, far more offensive to his sensibilities than being potentially bland. —Rachel Syme, The New Yorker, 23 Dec. 2024

The answer is important because being a phony is hard work. —Larae Quy, Forbes, 20 Dec. 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

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

perhaps alteration of fawney gilded brass ring used in the fawney rig, a confidence game, from Irish fáinne ring, from Old Irish ánne — more at anus

Noun

derivative of phony entry 1

Verb

derivative of phony entry 1 or phony entry 2

Noun combining form

borrowed from Greek -phōnia, from -phōnos "having a sound (of the kind or number specified)" (derivative of phōnḗ "sound made by something living, voice, speech, utterance") + -ia -ia entry 1 — more at phono-

First Known Use

Adjective

1889, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1902, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1940, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing phony

• phony-baloney

Rhymes for phony

• boney
• boni
• bony
• bunny
• coney
• crony
• funny
• gunny
• honey
• money
• monie
• mony

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Kids Definition

phony

1 of 2 adjective

pho·​ny

variants also phoney

ˈfō-nē 

phonier; phoniest

: not genuine or real: as

a(1)

: intended to deceive or mislead

(2)

: counterfeit entry 2 sense 1

a phony $10 bill

b

: causing suspicion : probably dishonest

sounds like a phony excuse to me

c

: fictitious, false

gave a phony name to the police

phoniness noun

phony

2 of 2 noun

variants also phoney

plural phonies also phoneys

: a phony person or thing