make-believe
[ meyk-bi-leev ]
/ ˈmeɪk bɪˌliv /
noun
pretense, especially of an innocent or playful kind; feigning; sham: the make-believe of children playing.
a pretender; a person who pretends.
adjective
pretended; feigned; imaginary; made-up; unreal: a make-believe world of fantasy.
Origin of make-believe
First recorded in 1805–15
Words nearby make-believe
make way,
make whoopee,
make with,
make-ahead,
make-and-break,
make-believe,
make-do,
make-or-break,
make-peace,
make-ready,
make-up
Definition for make believe (2 of 2)
Origin of make
1
before 900; Middle English
maken, Old English
macian; cognate with Low German, Dutch
maken, German
machen
SYNONYMS FOR make
8
force.
synonym study for make
1.
Make,
construct,
manufacture mean to produce, to put into definite form, or to put parts together to make a whole.
Make is the general term:
Bees make wax.
Construct, more formal, means to put parts together, usually according to a plan or design:
to construct a building.
Manufacture usually refers to producing something from material that requires conversion from one state or condition to another, now almost entirely by means of machinery in a relatively complex process:
to manufacture automobiles by the assembly of different parts. The term is also often used contemptuously of unimaginative or hackneyed works of art with the implication that the work was produced mechanically, and is used abstractly with the idea of denying genuineness:
to manufacture an excuse.
OTHER WORDS FROM make
mak·a·ble, adjectiveBritish Dictionary definitions for make believe (1 of 3)
make believe
verb
to pretend or enact a fantasy
the children made believe they were doctors
noun make-believe
- a fantasy, pretence, or unreality
- (as modifier)a make-believe world
a person who pretends
British Dictionary definitions for make believe (2 of 3)
make
1
/ (meɪk) /
verb makes, making or made (mainly tr)
noun
Derived forms of make
makable, adjectiveWord Origin for make
Old English
macian; related to Old Frisian
makia to construct, Dutch
maken, German
machen to make
British Dictionary definitions for make believe (3 of 3)
make
2
/ (meɪk) /
noun archaic
a peer or consort
a mate or spouse
Derived forms of make
makeless, adjectiveWord Origin for make
Old English
gemaca mate; related to
match
1
Idioms and Phrases with make believe (1 of 2)
make believe
Pretend, as in Let's make believe we're elves. This expression in effect means making oneself believe in an illusion. [Early 1700s]
Idioms and Phrases with make believe (2 of 2)
make