/pri tend"/ , v.t.
1. to cause or attempt to cause (what is not so) to seem so: to pretend illness; to pretend that nothing is wrong.
2. to appear falsely, as to deceive; feign: to pretend to go to sleep.
3. to make believe: The children pretended to be cowboys.
4. to presume; venture: I can't pretend to say what went wrong.
5. to allege or profess, esp. insincerely or falsely: He pretended to have no knowledge of her whereabouts.
v.i.
6. to make believe.
7. to lay claim to (usually fol. by to ): She pretended to the throne.
8. to make pretensions (usually fol. by to ): He pretends to great knowledge.
9. Obs. to aspire, as a suitor or candidate (fol. by to ).
adj.
10. Informal. make-believe; simulated; counterfeit: pretend diamonds.
[ 1325-75; ME pretenden praetendere to stretch forth, put forward, pretend. See PRE-, TEND 1 ]
Syn. 1. simulate, fake, sham, counterfeit. PRETEND, AFFECT, ASSUME, FEIGN imply an attempt to create a false appearance. TO PRETEND is to create an imaginary characteristic or to play a part: to pretend sorrow. TO AFFECT is to make a consciously artificial show of having qualities that one thinks would look well and impress others: to affect shyness. TO ASSUME is to take on or put on a specific outward appearance, often (but not always) with intent to deceive: to assume an air of indifference. TO FEIGN implies using ingenuity in pretense, and some degree of imitation of appearance or characteristics: to feign surprise.