masquerade
noun
[ ˌmɑːskəˈreɪd ]
• a false show or pretence.
• "I doubt he could have kept up the masquerade for long"
Similar:
pretence,
deception,
pose,
act,
front,
facade,
disguise,
dissimulation,
cover-up,
bluff,
subterfuge,
play-acting,
make-believe,
put-on,
masquerade
verb
• pretend to be someone one is not.
• "a journalist masquerading as a man in distress"
Origin:
late 16th century: from French mascarade, from Italian mascherata, from maschera ‘mask’.
