fictitious

UK: /fɪkˈtɪʃəs/ US: /fɪkˈtɪʃəs/ ,(fik tish′əs)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026

fic•ti•tious /fɪkˈtɪʃəs/   adj. 

1. created, taken, or assumed for concealment;
   not genuine;
   false:
   fictitious names.
2. of, relating to, or made up of fiction:
   a fictitious heroine.

fic•ti•tious•ly, adv. 
Usage

fictional usually refers to events that are imaginary or made up:
a fictional tale.
fictitious more often implies that there was a deliberate effort to mislead or be false:
They used fictitious names on their gun permit applications.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

fic•ti•tious  (fik tish′əs), adj. 

1. created, taken, or assumed for the sake of concealment;
   not genuine;
   false:
   fictitious names.
2. of, pertaining to, or consisting of fiction;
   imaginatively produced or set forth;
   created by the imagination:
   a fictitious hero.

• Latin fictīcius artificial, equivalent. to fict(us) shaped, feigned (see fiction) + -īcius -itious
• 1605–15

fic•ti′tious•ly, adv. 
fic•ti′tious•ness, n. 
Synonyms

• 1. spurious, fake.
• 2. fictional.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

fictitious / fɪkˈtɪʃəs/ adjective

1. not genuine or authentic; assumed; false: to give a fictitious address
2. of, relating to, or characteristic of fiction; created by the imagination

ficˈtitiously adverb

ficˈtitiousness noun