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
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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
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Recent Examples of pretends
Thus ensnared in a fiction of his making, the narrator takes his phone out and pretends to press Record.
—
Giles Harvey, New Yorker, 30 Mar. 2026
Sporting a bright yellow raincoat and rainboots, Garcia pretends to be a journalist reporting on the storm in West Kendall as a palm tree leaf slaps her across the face.
—Xitlalic Montelongo, Miami Herald, 25 Mar. 2026
Thomas is eager to get the interview under way that evening, and the narrator, for reasons that are opaque even to himself, pretends to be recording their conversation.
—Hannah Gold, Harpers Magazine, 24 Mar. 2026
Salim has to be the pragmatic one who pretends everything around them isn’t morally unjustifiable just to get through the day without losing his mind.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 24 Mar. 2026
That's the county JD Vance pretends to be from.
—ABC News, 22 Mar. 2026
All about the fake Google security page Security researchers at Malwarebytes, a cybersecurity company, recently discovered a phishing website that pretends to be part of Google's account protection system.
—Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 21 Mar. 2026
Police said the man sometimes hangs around the Music Building and pretends to be a student.
—Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 21 Mar. 2026
The hypocrite pretends to be good because the hypocrite believes that society admires good and condemns wrong.
—David Frum, The Atlantic, 13 Mar. 2026
Giles Harvey, New Yorker, 30 Mar. 2026
Sporting a bright yellow raincoat and rainboots, Garcia pretends to be a journalist reporting on the storm in West Kendall as a palm tree leaf slaps her across the face.
—Xitlalic Montelongo, Miami Herald, 25 Mar. 2026
Thomas is eager to get the interview under way that evening, and the narrator, for reasons that are opaque even to himself, pretends to be recording their conversation.
—Hannah Gold, Harpers Magazine, 24 Mar. 2026
Salim has to be the pragmatic one who pretends everything around them isn’t morally unjustifiable just to get through the day without losing his mind.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 24 Mar. 2026
That's the county JD Vance pretends to be from.
—ABC News, 22 Mar. 2026
All about the fake Google security page Security researchers at Malwarebytes, a cybersecurity company, recently discovered a phishing website that pretends to be part of Google's account protection system.
—Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 21 Mar. 2026
Police said the man sometimes hangs around the Music Building and pretends to be a student.
—Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 21 Mar. 2026
The hypocrite pretends to be good because the hypocrite believes that society admires good and condemns wrong.
—David Frum, The Atlantic, 13 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pretends
Verb
-
Lead exposure poses particular risks to children and pregnant women.—
Karen Garcia,
Los Angeles Times,
2 Apr. 2026
-
Gill Pratt poses with an early version of NASA’s Valkyrie DRC robot.—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
2 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Philippe Venet assumes de Givenchy’s position.—
Laird Borrelli-Persson,
Vogue,
28 Mar. 2026
-
This math also assumes a 20% down payment.—
Jonathan Lansner,
Oc Register,
27 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Hsu plays Joy, a morose daughter of two Chinese immigrants.—
Rachel Syme,
New Yorker,
30 Mar. 2026
-
When the Heat plays Herro and Powell together, Miami has been outscored by 26 points in 249 minutes this season.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
30 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Ray tracing is a 3D rendering technology that simulates the behavior of light to produce realistic reflections and lighting effects.—
Will Greenwald,
PC Magazine,
2 Apr. 2026
-
Detachment 3 simulates a NASA emergency.—
Mark Strassmann,
CBS News,
28 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Gas prices could conceivably hit record levels of $5 per gallon if nobody acts to clear the bottleneck in Strait of Hormuz, De Haan said.—
Spencer Kimball,
CNBC,
31 Mar. 2026
-
That nearby pocket of unstable air acts like fuel.—
Brandi D. Addison,
USA Today,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Trump often professes his support for farmers.—
Anthony Pahnke,
Fortune,
14 Mar. 2026
-
The upcoming exhibition's contemporary edge professes the importance of displaying Native American art of the present, to resist the erasure of living, thriving Indigenous American cultures and communities.—
Anya Sesay,
jsonline.com,
26 Feb. 2026
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
Verb
-
Someone who’s really living the Andrew Tate-like lifestyle Jacob only feigns is his bestie Cameron (Dylan Playfair).—
Dennis Harvey,
Variety,
7 Aug. 2025
-
The second man with a flail steps forward and feigns a move.—
Miguel Torres,
AZCentral.com,
16 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Pretends.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pretends. Accessed 3 Apr. 2026.
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