sham

Universal Words noun, adjective, verb noun (disapproving) 1 [sing.] a situation, feeling, system, etc. that is not as good or true as it seems to be: The latest crime figures are a complete sham. * She felt trapped in a sham of a marriage. 2 [C,usually sing.] a person who pretends to be sth that they are not: The article exposes him for the sham that he really is. 3 [U] behaviour, feelings, words, etc. that are intended to make sb/sth seem to be better than they really are: Their promises turned out to be full of sham and hypocrisy. * His intellectual pretensions are all sham. adjective [onlybeforenoun] (usually disapproving) not genuine but intended to seem real SYNFALSE: a sham marriage verb (-mm-) to pretend sth: [V] Is he really sick or is he just shamming? [also V-ADJ, VN]