PRETEND


Meaning of PRETEND in English

transcription, транскрипция: [ prɪtend ]

( pretends, pretending, pretended)

1.

If you pretend that something is the case, you act in a way that is intended to make people believe that it is the case, although in fact it is not.

I pretend that things are really okay when they’re not...

Sometimes the boy pretended to be asleep...

I had no option but to pretend ignorance.

VERB : V that , V to-inf , V n

2.

If children or adults pretend that they are doing something, they imagine that they are doing it, for example as part of a game.

She can sunbathe and pretend she’s in Spain...

The children pretend to be different animals dancing to the music.

VERB : V that , V to-inf

3.

If you do not pretend that something is the case, you do not claim that it is the case.

We do not pretend that the past six years have been without problems for us...

Within this lecture I cannot pretend to deal adequately with dreams.

VERB : with neg , V that , V to-inf

Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner's English Dictionary.      Английский словарь Коллинз COBUILD для изучающих язык на продвинутом уровне.