pretend: meaning and words from its letters
7 letters · 10 letter points · starts with P · ends with D
Meaning of pretend
verb
- intransitive
To speak or behave so as to give a false or simulated appearance.
Example: You don't have to pretend that the soup tastes fine.
- intransitive
To speak or behave so as to give a false or simulated appearance. To engage in make-believe.
Example: She moved her fingers across the desk, pretending to play the piano.
- intransitive, transitive
To speak or behave so as to give a false or simulated appearance. To feign, affect (a state, quality, etc.).
Example: She's pretending illness to get out of the business meeting.
- formal, intransitive
To lay claim (to an ability, status, advantage, etc.).
Example: The family's exile was intended to stop them pretending to the throne.
Listed forms: pretends, pretending, pretended.
Source: Wiktionary — pretend.
adj
- not-comparable
Not really what it is represented as being; imaginary, feigned.
Example: As children we used to go on "spying" missions around the neighbour's house, but it was all pretend.
Source: Wiktionary — pretend.
noun
- childish, informal, uncountable
The act of engaging in pretend play.
Example: We used to dress up in our grandparents' old clothes and play pretend.
Source: Wiktionary — pretend.
Adapted from Wiktionary contributors via Kaikki.org. Selected senses and forms; quotations omitted. Definition text is CC BY-SA 4.0.
Synonyms by meaning
Words are grouped by sense, so they are not necessarily interchangeable in every context. Search synonyms for pretend.
adjective
imagined as in a play
- make-believe
noun
the enactment of a pretense
- make-believe
verb
make believe with the intent to deceive
verb
behave unnaturally or affectedly
Open English WordNet Team, 2025, derived from Princeton University WordNet; selected synonym groups under CC BY 4.0. Source · OEWN notice · Princeton notice.
Is pretend in our word lists?
| Word list | Status |
|---|---|
| American English | Found |
| British English | Found |
| Extended English | Found |
These are spelling-list matches, not official game validity checks. Check the rules and dictionary used by your game.
Letter-value score of pretend
P(3) + R(1) + E(1) + T(1) + E(1) + N(1) + D(2) = 10 points.
This is a sum of letter values without board bonuses or word multipliers. A blank tile is worth zero: subtract the value of each letter supplied by a blank. The score does not establish game validity. Full letter-value table.
Anagrams of pretend
0 other standard-list words use exactly these letters, including repeated letters.
No other single-word anagram was found in our standard list.
Shorter words from pretend
62 shorter standard-list words can be made using no letter more often than it occurs in pretend. Showing up to 24, longest first.