phony

1 of 4

adjective

pho·ny ˈfō-nē

variants or less commonly phoney

phonier; phoniest

Synonyms of phony next

: not genuine or real: such as

a(1)

: intended to deceive or mislead

(2)

: intended to defraud : counterfeit

: arousing suspicion : probably dishonest

something phony about the story

: having no basis in fact : fictitious

phony publicity stories

: false, sham

a phony name

: 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

: sound

telephony

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

dysphonia

Example Sentences

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

The couple submitted phony requests for payments by the city related to a youth violence prevention program. —

Dave Collins, ajc, 31 May 2023 While hospitals’ accommodation of phony treatments might convince a doctor-averse cancer patient to try chemo, the tacit endorsement is just as likely to convince another patient that alternative therapies are effective. —

Matthew Hongoltz-hetling, The New Republic, 28 Feb. 2023 Now, the nursing diploma scandal and a new scholarly book are putting the spotlight on another underappreciated and fast growing fraud problem in education: phony degree mills. —

Emma Whitford, Forbes, 21 Feb. 2023 New transcripts of closed-door testimony to the Jan. 6 House committee show Donald Trump and his allies had a direct hand in the Nevada Republican Party's scheme to send a phony electoral certificate to Congress in 2020 in a last-ditch attempt to keep the former president in power. —

CBS News, 23 Dec. 2022 The documents with that phony assertion were sent to Congress. —

Richard Ruelas, The Arizona Republic, 9 Oct. 2022 Riley moved his team to three different Boston locations during the series because rowdy Celtics fans kept ordering phony room service and pulling fire alarms at the Lakers’ Hub hotels. —

Dan Shaughnessy, BostonGlobe.com, 17 May 2023 But to this point of the year, the contrast between the clubs has nonetheless been jarring — with the Dodgers looking again like baseball’s version of a blue-chip stock, just as the Padres have teetered like a phony, volatile, crash-prone cryptocurrency. —

Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 15 May 2023 The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency says phishing, usually through a phony hyperlink or malware disguised as an attachment, is the most common way people using Royal gain access to networks. —

Kelli Smith, Dallas News, 6 May 2023

Noun

New York seems to attract a disproportionate share of the prevaricators, scammers, fraudsters, cheats, and fabulists who have garnered headlines (which is ironic considering how much New Yorkers enjoy deriding California as full of phonies). —

Paul Tullis, Town & Country, 30 Apr. 2023 In a world of phonies, Kim Mulkey is anything but fake. —

Nancy Armour, USA TODAY, 30 Mar. 2023 Kids can spot a phony. —

Expert Panel®, Forbes, 6 Feb. 2023 Players will see right through a phony. —

Gordon Monson, The Salt Lake Tribune, 1 Nov. 2021 No one likes a phony -- least of all, you. —

Tarot Astrologers, chicagotribune.com, 6 Sep. 2020 The Wizard of Oz is a big phony, basically. —

Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 18 Jan. 2022 Godard the revolutionary; Godard the romantic; Godard the aging trickster; Godard the critic; Godard the phony; Godard the living filmmaker. —

Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 14 Sep. 2022 All told, Cardone produced or aided in the production of over 4,000 phony $100 bills, officials said. —

Travis Andersen, BostonGlobe.com, 19 Jan. 2023

Verb

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 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'phony.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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

Time Traveler

The first known use of phony was in 1889

See more words from the same year