pretend


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pretend (that) black is white

To say, believe, or act like what's true is the opposite of the real situation. The government can't keep pretending black is white, or else we're going to head into the same economic difficulty we were in 10 years ago. The president could pretend that black is white, and he would still have people lining up to say that he is right.
See also: black, pretend, white

pretend to (something)

To feign or claim to have some quality, skill, or characteristic. Jonathan pretends to the palate of a connoisseur, but really he's just pretentious. I like to write, but couldn't pretend to the kind of talent she has.
See also: pretend, to
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

pretend to something

to claim to have a skill or quality. I can hardly pretend to the artistry that Wally has, but I can play the piano a bit. I can't pretend to that level of skill.
See also: pretend, to
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
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References in periodicals archive ?
LAHORE -- The Vice President of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and daughter of former prime minister Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, Maryam Nawaz Sharif on Friday said that the daughters and sisters of the political opponents being thrown in jails and only the sister of PM Imran Khan is pretended as innocent.
Part One: Examining Independent and Socio-dramatic Pretend Play Skills in Typically Developing Children — Learn the five elements of pretend play that lead to long-term outcomes for rich social interactions later in life.
Of particular interest to us when looking into the associations between social competence and pretend play, is that researchers have found that children who participated in more complex pretend play were preferred by their peers and their social abilities were more highly developed (Howes & Matheson, 1992; Howes, Unger, & Matheson, 1991).
Truth is, we're all afraid to hit the pause button, so we continue to do what we know best: we pretend, we pretend to know what we want, pretend to know what we're doing and even pretend to know where we're getting at.
Police are warning the public about a new scam to get money from drivers which has been observed in the wider Nicosia area where the fraudsters pretend to have been hit by cars.
'Please avoid scammers and fixers who pretend to be in a position to process Owwa benefits for OFWs,' Cacdac said.
Of course, children prefer scooping and eating real ice cream to playing with wooden cones adorned with pretend sparkles.
"All I ever wanted to do was be to play pretend and that is the ultimate," she said.
Pretend you like to follow celebrities on Instagram and Snapchat.
It wasn't pretend - that was absolute deep, soul-searching sadness.
CommerceWest Bank (OTCBB: CWBK) supported healthy childhood development by joining the Pretend City Children's Museum for their annual fundraiser.
"We don't have to pretend that we don't know each other, because we already don't know each other."
There's no way to know what will happen when you pretend. Indie Ellen, 11, California ...
First, play in the current study is defined as pretend or make-believe.