pretend
Part of speech: verb
adj
noun
Morphological type: simple
Etymology: Etymology tree
Proto-Indo-European *per-
Proto-Indo-European *preh₂-
Proto-Indo-European *-i
Proto-Indo-European *préh₂i?
Proto-Italic *prai
Proto-Italic *prai-
Latin prae-
Proto-Indo-European *ten-
Proto-Indo-European *tend-der.
Proto-Italic *tendō
Latin tendō
Latin praetendōbor.
Anglo-Norman pretendreder.
English pretend
From Anglo-Norman pretendre, Middle French pretendre (French prétendre (“to claim, demand”)), from Latin praetendere (“to put forward, hold out, pretend”), from prae- (“pre-”) + tendō (“stretch”); see tend.
Inflected forms:
form: pretends
pos: verb
tags: present
singular
third-person
form: pretending
pos: verb
tags: participle
present
form: pretended
pos: verb
tags: participle
past
form: pretended
pos: verb
tags: past
Senses:
gloss: To speak or behave so as to give a false or simulated appearance.
pos: verb
tags: intransitive
examples: You don't have to pretend that the soup tastes fine.
You don't have to pretend to like the soup.
If you don't like it, say so. You don't have to pretend.
To get into the club, he pretended to be over 18.
"After what past at Upton, so soon to engage in a new amour with another woman, while I fancied, and you pretended, your heart was bleeding for me!"
It's rather like a beautiful Inverness cloak one has inherited. Much too good to hide away, so one wears it instead of an overcoat and pretends it's an amusing new fashion.
But I love you / More than I wanted to / There's no point in trying to pretend
You pretend you're high / Pretend you're bored / Pretend you're anything / Just to be adored
I have nothing but contempt for people who hire ghost-writers. But at least most faux authors have the decency to pretend that they are sweating blood over "their" book.
gloss: To speak or behave so as to give a false or simulated appearance.
pos: verb
tags: intransitive
examples: She moved her fingers across the desk, pretending to play the piano.
She didn't have a real piano to play, so she just pretended.
"The truth is, Ma'am," said Mrs. Grant, pretending to whisper across the table to Mrs. Norris, "that Dr. Grant hardly knows what the natural taste of our apricot is;[…]."
Luster claimed that the women had consented to sex and were only pretending to be asleep.
gloss: To speak or behave so as to give a false or simulated appearance.
pos: verb
tags: intransitive
transitive
examples: She's pretending illness to get out of the business meeting.
He pretended an air of indifference that he'd never assumed before.
This let him know, / Lest, wilfully transgressing, he pretend / Surprisal.
Dropping one's anger and pretending indifference does not make one objective, only acceptable.
Gap and other clothes manufacturers should stop using small subcontractors because they are difficult to control. Instead, they should open up their own fully-owned production facilities so that they cannot pretend ignorance when abuses are committed.
gloss: To lay claim (to an ability, status, advantage, etc.).
pos: verb
tags: formal
intransitive
examples: The family's exile was intended to stop them pretending to the throne.
Chiefs shall be grudged the part which they pretend.
People observed the diversity of schools and the acerbity of their disputes, and decided that all alike were pretending to knowledge which was in fact unattainable.
gloss: To hold before, or put forward, as a cloak or disguise for something else; to exhibit as a veil for something hidden.
pos: verb
tags: obsolete
transitive
examples: Lest that too heavenly form, pretended / To hellish falsehood, snare them.
gloss: To intend; to design, to plot; to attempt.
pos: verb
tags: obsolete
transitive
examples: Such as shall pretend / Malicious practices against his state.
gloss: To hold before one; to extend.
pos: verb
tags: obsolete
transitive
examples: Pastorella […] Was by the Captaine all this while defended, / Who, minding more her safety then himselfe, / His target alwayes over her pretended[…].
But had thoſe vvits the vvonders of their dayes, / Or that ſvveete Teian Poet [Anacreon] vvhich did ſpend / His plenteous vaine in ſetting forth her [Venus's] prayſe, / Seene but a glims of this, vvhich I pretend, / Hovv vvondrouſly vvould he her face commend, […]
gloss: Not really what it is represented as being; imaginary, feigned.
pos: adj
tags: not-comparable
examples: As children we used to go on "spying" missions around the neighbour's house, but it was all pretend.
gloss: The act of engaging in pretend play.
pos: noun
tags: childish
informal
uncountable
examples: We used to dress up in our grandparents' old clothes and play pretend.
Related words: pretender
pretense
pretension
pretentious
pretentiousness
Derived words: outpretend
pretended
pretendedly
Pretendian
pretendingly
pretendingness
Pretendolino
unpretended
unpretending
Translations:
lang: Afrikaans
word: voorgee
lang: Arabic
word: تَظَاهَرَ
roman: taẓāhara
lang: Bulgarian
word: престру́вам се
roman: prestrúvam se
lang: Bulgarian
word: симули́рам
roman: simulíram
lang: Catalan
word: fer veure
lang: Dutch
word: doen alsof
lang: Esperanto
word: komedii
lang: Finnish
word: teeskennellä
lang: Finnish
word: olla tekevinään
lang: French
word: feindre
lang: French
word: faire semblant
lang: German
word: so tun, als ob
lang: Hindi
word: ढोंग
roman: ḍhoṅg
lang: Icelandic
word: þykjast
lang: Irish
word: lig ar
lang: Italian
word: fare finta
lang: Italian
word: fingere
lang: Kabuverdianu
word: finji
lang: Māori
word: whakatakune
lang: Māori
word: whakataruna
lang: Māori
word: whakangaio
lang: Spanish
word: aparentar
lang: Spanish
word: hacer de
lang: Spanish
word: hacer como que
lang: Tagalog
word: magkunwari