fake

UK: /ˈfeɪk/ US: /feɪk/ ,(fāk)

Inflections of 'fake' (v): (⇒ conjugate)

fakes

v 3rd person singular

faking

v pres p

faked

v past

faked

v past p

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025

fake¹ /feɪk/   v., faked, fak•ing, n., adj. 
v. [~ + object]

1. to create or produce (something) in order to mislead, deceive, or cheat others:
   The embezzler faked the report.
2. to pretend;
   simulate;
   feign:
   faking illness.
3. to imitate convincingly or acceptably;
   counterfeit:
   to fake some expensive paintings.
4. fake it, [no object] to accomplish by trial and error or by improvising:
   He doesn't know how to use that computer, he's just faking it.

n. [countable]

5. anything that misleads, deceives, cheats, or fools others by seeming to be what it is not;
   counterfeit;
   sham:
   The diamond was a fake.
6. a person who fakes;
   fraud:
   That salesman is a fake.

adj. 

7. designed to deceive or cheat;
   counterfeit:
   a fake diamond.

fak•er, n. [countable]

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

fake¹  (fāk), v., faked, fak•ing, n., adj. 
v.t. 

1. prepare or make (something specious, deceptive, or fraudulent):
   to fake a report showing nonexistent profits.
2. to conceal the defects of or make appear more attractive, interesting, valuable, etc., usually in order to deceive:
   The story was faked a bit to make it more sensational.
3. to pretend;
   simulate:
   to fake illness.
4. to accomplish by trial and error or by improvising:
   I don't know the job, but I can fake it.
5. to trick or deceive (an opponent) by making a fake (often fol. by out):
   The running back faked out the defender with a deft move and scored.
6. Music and Dance [Jazz.]
   • to improvise:
     to fake an accompaniment.
   • to play (music) without reading from a score.

v.i. 

7. to fake something;
   pretend.
8. to give a fake to an opponent.
9. fake out, [Slang.]
   • to trick;
     deceive:
     She faked me out by acting friendly and then stole my job.
   • to surprise, as by a sudden reversal:
     They thought we weren't coming back, but we faked them out by showing up during dinner.

n. 

10. anything made to appear otherwise than it actually is;
    counterfeit:
    This diamond necklace is a fake.
11. a person who fakes;
    faker:
    The doctor with the reputed cure for cancer proved to be a fake.
12. a spurious report or story.
13. Sport a simulated play or move intended to deceive an opponent.

adj. 

14. designed to deceive or cheat;
    not real;
    counterfeit.

• 1805–15; origin, originally vagrants' slang: to do for, rob, kill (someone), shape (something); perh. variant of obsolete feak, feague to beat, akin to Dutch veeg a slap, vegen to sweep, wipe

Synonyms

• 3. feign, affect, dissemble, sham, fabricate.
• 11. fraud, impostor, quack, charlatan, deceiver.

fake²  (fāk), v., faked, fak•ing, n. [Naut.]
v.t. 

1. Nautical, Naval Terms to lay (a rope) in a coil or series of long loops so as to allow to run freely without fouling or kinking (often fol. by down).

n. 

2. Nautical, Naval Terms any complete turn of a rope that has been faked down.
3. Nautical, Naval Terms any of the various ways in which a rope may be faked down.

Also, flake. 

• Middle English faken to coil (a rope), of obscure origin, originally 1350–1400

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

fake / feɪk/ verb

1. (transitive) to cause (something inferior or not genuine) to appear more valuable, desirable, or real by fraud or pretence
2. to pretend to have (an illness, emotion, etc)

noun

1. an object, person, or act that is not genuine; sham, counterfeit, or forgery

adjective

1. not genuine; spurious

Etymology: originally (C18) thieves' slang to mug or do someone; probably via Polari from Italian facciare to make or do

ˈfaker noun

ˈfakery noun