Phoney

English

Adjective

Phoney (comparative phonier, superlative phoniest)

1. 1900 Fraudulent; fake; having a misleading appearance.

   A good jeweler should be able to tell a real stone from a phoney one.

Synonyms

• (fraudulent): bogus, counterfeit, fake
• See also Thesaurus:fake

Derived terms

• phoneyness n
• phoniness n

Noun

Phoney (plural Phoneys or phonies)

1. A person who assumes an identity or quality other than their own.

   He claims to be a doctor, but he's nothing but a fast-talking phoney.

2. A person who professes beliefs or opinions that he or she does not hold.

Synonyms

• dissembler
• pretender
• fake

Thesaurus

artificial, bogus, charlatan, counterfeit, counterfeiter, deceitful, deceiver, dishonest, double-dealer, ersatz, factitious, fake, faker, false, forgery, fraud, fraudulent, hoax, humbug, hypocritical, imitation, impostor, insincere, mock, mountebank, paste, phony, pretended, pretender, quack, sham, spurious, synthetic, trickster, unreal

Alternative forms

• phony

Etymology

Perhaps an alteration of fawney “gilt brass ring used by swindlers” (1781), from Ir. fáinne “ring.”

Pronunciation

• Audio (US)

  noicon

  (file)

• Rhymes: -əʊni

Translations

Adjective

Fraudulent; fake

Arabic: بَهْرَج (báhraj) m., خَرّاص (xarrāʂ) m. Chinese: 伪 (wěi), 冒牌 (màopái) Dutch: onecht, nagemaakt (usu. counterfeit) Finnish: väärä (fi), väärennetty (fi) French: frauduleux (fr) m., contrefait (fr) m., falsifié (fr) m., faux (fr) m., à la noix (fr), à la gomme (fr) German: unecht, falsch, Schein-

Hebrew: מזויף Italian: fasullo (it) Japanese: 偽物の (にせものの, nisemono no) Russian: поддельный (poddél’nyj), фальшивый (fal’šívyj) Spanish: falso (es)

Noun

A person who assumes an identity or quality other than their own

Finnish: huijari (fi)

French: usurpateur (fr) m., usurpatrice (fr) f., faux-nez (fr), faussaire (fr)

A person who professes beliefs or opinions that he or she does not hold

French: mystificateur (fr) m., guignol (fr) m., faux (fr) prophète (fr) m.

Derived terms

• phoney up
• Phoney War