as in fraud
one who makes false claims of identity or expertise
it turns out that the guy who claimed to work for a modeling agency was just a pretender
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of pretender
These two pretenders reflect an insider debate whose subject is not the existence of the Islamic Republic but the best method of its survival.
—
Karim Sadjadpour, The Atlantic, 4 Mar. 2026
The Cult of the Beaver has to fend off pretenders.
—Aj Willingham, AJC.com, 13 Jan. 2026
Momentum hardens, vulnerabilities are exposed and the gap between contenders and pretenders is out in the open.
—Clayton Davis, Variety, 7 Jan. 2026
With the monetary system in a free-fall, some Iranians would rather have a beneficent king than all these pretenders oh-so-interested in the people.
—Editorial Board, Washington Post, 5 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for pretender
Karim Sadjadpour, The Atlantic, 4 Mar. 2026
The Cult of the Beaver has to fend off pretenders.
—Aj Willingham, AJC.com, 13 Jan. 2026
Momentum hardens, vulnerabilities are exposed and the gap between contenders and pretenders is out in the open.
—Clayton Davis, Variety, 7 Jan. 2026
With the monetary system in a free-fall, some Iranians would rather have a beneficent king than all these pretenders oh-so-interested in the people.
—Editorial Board, Washington Post, 5 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for pretender
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pretender
Noun
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Americans for Prosperity sponsored a striking display in the DECC’s Pioneer Hall, demonstrating the scale of the state’s fraud losses with faux $100 bills stacked in volumes that would total $2 billion.—
Jay Gabler,
Twin Cities,
30 May 2026
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The authors then matched high-fraud ZIP codes to areas with fast-appreciating home prices.—
Tristan Bove,
Fortune,
29 May 2026
Noun
-
Thirty-four years having passed since the last go-round, we are treated to such modern advances as catfishing, drones, deep fakes, social media and pushy true-crime podcasters.—
Robert Lloyd,
Los Angeles Times,
4 June 2026
-
McKenna is extremely shifty with the puck, blending shoulder fakes into his playmaking.—
Scott Wheeler,
New York Times,
3 June 2026
Noun
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The controversial $500,000 portion of PFAS money allocation scheme is a sham and undermines the public trust (Tamarac finds a $500,000 slush fund, editorial, May 21).—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
28 May 2026
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This quilt and shams set is reversible, lightweight, high-quality, and breathable.—
Tamim Alnuweiri,
InStyle,
28 May 2026
Noun
-
When news of Israel’s secret outposts in Iraq’s desert emerged, Iraqis admonished their leaders as traitors, and the boisterous militiamen affiliated with the government as impostors for allowing their land to be colonized by an enemy.—
Nabil Salih,
Time,
26 May 2026
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These scams often include government impostors, direct deposit fraud, phishing, identity theft, payment redirection and social media scams.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
25 May 2026
Noun
-
The actors are perfectly cast, starting with Marmaï’s likable Antoine, the only player here not being the deceiver.—
Pete Hammond,
Deadline,
12 May 2026
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The film tells the true and twisted tale of a deceiver of land and folk, who, defying her birth as a woman, comported herself as a man and committed many a wicked deed.—
Leo Barraclough,
Variety,
20 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Then give the land back, you pompous charlatans.—
Joe Soucheray,
Twin Cities,
2 May 2026
-
To this day, a portion of the left-wing Democratic elite views Obama as a charlatan who hoodwinked their voters into supporting him.—
Ben Smith,
semafor.com,
28 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
To tell the truly venomous from the fakers, there are a couple details to help distinguish the two.—
Kirsten Fiscus,
Nashville Tennessean,
17 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Good afternoon and welcome to Con Con, the convention for swindlers, mountebanks, and the people who love them.—
Henry Alford,
New Yorker,
1 Dec. 2025
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Godard might have come across as a species of poseur – a pretentious, quote-spouting mountebank – but his way of seeing was genuinely new.—
Peter Rainer,
Christian Science Monitor,
13 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Pretender.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pretender. Accessed 8 Jun. 2026.
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