I. mas ‧ que ‧ rade 1 /ˌmæskəˈreɪd/ BrE AmE noun
[ Date: 1500-1600 ; Language: French ; Origin: Old Italian mascarada , from maschera ; ⇨ ↑ mask 1 ]
1 . [countable] a formal dance or party where people wear ↑ mask s and unusual clothes
2 . [uncountable and countable] a way of behaving or speaking that hides your true thoughts or feelings SYN pretence :
She didn’t really love him, but she kept up the masquerade for the children’s sake.
II. masquerade 2 BrE AmE verb [intransitive]
to pretend to be something or someone different
masquerade as
A number of police officers masqueraded as demonstrators.
Some of these breakfast foods are just candy masquerading as cereals.
masquerade under
He was masquerading under a false name.