pretend
Definition from Wiktionary, a free dictionary
Contents |
[edit] English
[edit] Etymology
From Old French pretendre (French: prétendre (false friend)) < Latin praetendere, present active infinitive of praetendō (“‘stretch forth or forward, spread before, hold out, put forward as an excuse, allege, pretend’”) < prae (“‘before, in front of’”) + tendō (“‘stretch’”); see tend.
[edit] Pronunciation
[edit] Verb
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Infinitive |
Third person singular |
Simple past |
Past participle |
Present participle |
to pretend (third-person singular simple present pretends, present participle pretending, simple past and past participle pretended)
- 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
[edit] Translations
to act as though something is different from what it is
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[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
