sham meaning
UK /ʃæm/ US /ʃæm/ 1 syllable
sham (noun): something that is a counterfeit; not what it seems to be.
sham has 5 meanings in this dictionary, as noun, verb and adjective.
sham as a noun
- something that is a counterfeit; not what it seems to be
Type of: imitation
Kinds: fake book, Potemkin village
- a person who makes deceitful pretenses
Synonyms: imposter, impostor, pretender, fake, faker, fraud, shammer, pseudo, pseud, role player
Type of: deceiver
Kinds: name dropper, ringer
sham as a verb
- make believe with the intent to deceive
- He feigned that he was ill
- He shammed a headache
Synonyms: feign, pretend, affect, dissemble
Type of: misrepresent
Kinds: play possum, take a dive, talk through one's hat, mouth
Related forms: shammer
- make a pretence of
- She assumed indifference, even though she was seething with anger
- he feigned sleep
Synonyms: simulate, assume, feign
Type of: dissemble
Related forms: shammer
sham as an adjective
- adopted in order to deceive
- an assumed name
- an assumed cheerfulness
- a fictitious address
- fictive sympathy
- a pretended interest
- a put-on childish voice
- sham modesty
Synonyms: assumed, false, fictitious, fictive, pretended, put on
Similar: counterfeit
How to pronounce sham
sham is pronounced /ʃæm/ in British English and /ʃæm/ in American English. It has 1 syllable.
Words that rhyme with sham
Word lists: words starting with SH · words ending in AM · 4-letter words
More about sham on Wikipedia.