pretend

Definition from Wiktionary, a free dictionary

Contents 1 English 1.1 Etymology 1.2 Pronunciation 1.3 Verb 1.3.1 Usage notes 1.3.2 Related terms 1.3.3 Translations 1.3.4 External links

[edit] English

[edit] Etymology

From Old French pretendre (French: prétendre (false friend)) < Latin prætendere (“‘to stretch forth or forward, to spread before, hold out, put forward as an excuse, allege, pretend’”) < præ- (“‘before’”) + tendere (“‘to stretch’”); see tend.

[edit] Pronunciation

•  Audio (US)^{help, file}

[edit] Verb

to pretend (third-person singular simple present pretends, present participle pretending, simple past and past participle pretended)

1. to claim that or act as if something is different from what it actually is, often incorrectly and knowingly

   Don't pretend you didn't know about this!

[edit] Usage notes

• This is a catenative verb that takes the to infinitive. See Appendix:English catenative verbs

[edit] Related terms

• pretender
• pretense
• pretension
• pretentious
• pretentiousness

[edit] Translations

[edit] External links

• pretend in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
• pretend in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911