English verb: feign | |||
1. | feign (communication) make believe with the intent to deceive | ||
Samples | He feigned that he was ill. He shammed a headache. | ||
Synonyms | affect, dissemble, pretend, sham | ||
Pattern of use | Somebody ----s something. Somebody ----s that CLAUSE. Somebody ----s to INFINITIVE | ||
Broader (hypernym) | belie, misrepresent | ||
Narrower (hyponym) | bull, bullshit, fake, mouth, play possum, take a dive, talk through one's hat | ||
Verb group | make, make believe, pretend | ||
2. | feign (creation) make a pretence of | ||
Samples | She assumed indifference, even though she was seething with anger. He feigned sleep. | ||
Synonyms | assume, sham, simulate | ||
Pattern of use | Somebody ----s something | ||
Broader (hypernym) | act, dissemble, pretend | ||
Narrower (hyponym) | feint, play | ||