pretence : Dictionary / Wörterbuch (BEOLINGUS, TU Chemnitz)

English Dictionary: pretence	by the DICT Development Group
3 results for pretence
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
pretence n a false or unsupportable quality [syn: pretension, pretense, pretence] an artful or simulated semblance; "under the guise of friendship he betrayed them" Synonym(s): guise, pretense, pretence, pretext pretending with intention to deceive Synonym(s): pretense, pretence, feigning, dissembling imaginative intellectual play Synonym(s): pretense, pretence, make-believe the act of giving a false appearance; "his conformity was only pretending" Synonym(s): pretense, pretence, pretending, simulation, feigning
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Pretence \Pretence"\, n., Pretenceful \Pretence"ful\, a., Pretenceless \Pretence"less\, a. See {Pretense}, {Pretenseful}, {Pretenseless}.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Pretense \Pretense"\, Pretence* \Pre*tence\, n. [LL. praetensus, for L. praetentus, p. p. of praetendere. See {Pretend}, and cf. {Tension}.] 1. The act of laying claim; the claim laid; assumption; pretension. --Spenser. Primogeniture can not have any pretense to a right of solely inheriting property or power. --Locke. I went to Lambeth with Sir R. Brown's pretense to the wardenship of Merton College, Oxford. --Evelyn. 2. The act of holding out, or offering, to others something false or feigned; presentation of what is deceptive or hypocritical; deception by showing what is unreal and concealing what is real; false show; simulation; as, pretense of illness; under pretense of patriotism; on pretense of revenging C[91]sar's death. 3. That which is pretended; false, deceptive, or hypocritical show, argument, or reason; pretext; feint. Let not the Trojans, with a feigned pretense Of proffered peace, delude the Latian prince. --Dryden. 4. Intention; design. [Obs.] A very pretense and purpose of unkindness. --Shak. Note: See the {Note} under {Offense}. Syn: Mask; appearance; color; show; pretext; excuse. Usage: {Pretense}, {Pretext}. A pretense is something held out as real when it is not so, thus falsifying the truth. A pretext is something woven up in order to cover or conceal one's true motives, feelings, or reasons. Pretext is often, but not always, used in a bad sense.