1. Make believe with the intent to deceive
   "He pretended that he was ill";
   - feign, sham, affect, dissemble
    
2. Behave unnaturally or affectedly
   "She's just pretending";
   - dissemble, act
    
3. Represent fictitiously, as in a play, or pretend to be or act like
   "The children pretended to be superheroes";
   - make, make believe
    
4. State insincerely
   "She pretended not to have known the suicide bomber";
   - profess
    
5. Put forward a claim and assert right or possession of
   "pretend the title of King"
    
6. Say or suggest something without being certain
   "I cannot pretend to say that you are wrong";
   - guess, venture, hazard

1. The enactment of a pretence
   "it was just pretend";
   - make-believe

1. Imagined as in a play
   "dangling their legs in the water to catch pretend fish";
   - make-believe

Derived forms: pretended, pretends, pretending

See also: unreal

Type of: acquit, act, arrogate, bear, behave, belie, carry, claim, comport, conduct, deport, do, lay claim, misrepresent, muse, play, pretence [Brit, Cdn], pretending, pretense [N. Amer], represent, simulation, speculate

Encyclopedia: Pretend