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A false display of feelings, attitudes, or intentions
“He asked me questions without any pretence at politeness.”
An excuse provided, such as for a mistake or failing
“Often, I conned my mother into letting me stay up late with the pretence of homework or reading a book.”
A lie, falsehood or trickery used to deceive
“He abducted the queen on the pretence of seeking to protect her.”
A false front or appearance, or the act of putting one up
“Sally was struggling to keep up the pretence that all was well.”
A claim to have a particular skill or quality
“As in the previous volume, any pretence to scholarship goes out the window when no specific source is given for the great majority of quotations or the books from which analysis is drawn.”
Affected and ostentatious speech, behaviour or attitudes
“It means that we let go of posturing and pretence and live simply as we are.”
The action of pretending or imagining that things are a certain way
“This universality can only be an imagined pretence, Hegel argues.”
A semblance or approximation to something
“His inane ramblings bore little pretence to coherency.”
A false, absurd, or distorted representation of something
Spoken or written words that are absurd or meaningless
An increase in quantity, size, or degree
An ambiguity or inadequacy in a set of rules that can be potentially exploited
A moral or legal entitlement to have or do something
Related Words and Phrases
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