variants
or imposter
as in pretender
one who makes false claims of identity or expertise
the man who claimed to be a prince turned out to be an impostor
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of impostor
The only people who never feel like impostors are the real impostors.
—
Melody Wilding, Forbes, 30 Oct. 2024
Which was presumably not difficult to do after Daniela, having at last discovered that the man sleeping in her bed for the past month was an impostor, bonked Jason B on the head and shoved him down the basement stairs.
—Chris Klimek, Vulture, 26 June 2024
The prospective mystery series follows Sonny, a teenager who wakes up in the hospital after a car accident to discover that his mom — his only parent, and his best friend — appears to have been replaced by an impostor.
—Matt Webb Mitovich, TVLine, 23 Oct. 2024
Seeing a Santa impostor commit heinous acts amidst the backdrop of powdery white snow and the glow of Christmas lights was jarring and mostly novel for the time, though 1974's Black Christmas was, of course, ahead of that game.
—Steven Thrash, EW.com, 19 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for impostor 
Melody Wilding, Forbes, 30 Oct. 2024
Which was presumably not difficult to do after Daniela, having at last discovered that the man sleeping in her bed for the past month was an impostor, bonked Jason B on the head and shoved him down the basement stairs.
—Chris Klimek, Vulture, 26 June 2024
The prospective mystery series follows Sonny, a teenager who wakes up in the hospital after a car accident to discover that his mom — his only parent, and his best friend — appears to have been replaced by an impostor.
—Matt Webb Mitovich, TVLine, 23 Oct. 2024
Seeing a Santa impostor commit heinous acts amidst the backdrop of powdery white snow and the glow of Christmas lights was jarring and mostly novel for the time, though 1974's Black Christmas was, of course, ahead of that game.
—Steven Thrash, EW.com, 19 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for impostor
Recent Examples of Synonyms for impostor
Noun
-
Every decision carries weight, and in a league where the line between contender and pretender is razor-thin, there’s little room for error.—
Kristian Winfield,
New York Daily News,
6 Jan. 2025
-
The only saving grace for City is that there is no clear pretender to take its place as the top dog in English soccer.—
Joe Prince-Wright, NBC Sports,
NBC News,
20 Dec. 2024
Noun
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One who comes to her full power when she is exiled by a charlatan, by a cruel leader.—
Matt Donnelly,
Variety,
26 Nov. 2024
-
The good, sincere members would flourish and the charlatans, the folks who over-promise to their constituents, would not.—
Gary Franks,
Boston Herald,
20 Jan. 2024
Noun
-
Travel fakes like this appear to be on the uptick in 2025.—
Christopher Elliott,
USA TODAY,
17 Jan. 2025
-
The truth became impossible to distill: Musk's vaunted Community Notes system was like a Band-Aid on a bullet hole, as reports of water shortages — some real, some fake — exploded into partisan blame games.—
Axios,
Axios,
10 Jan. 2025
Noun
-
Days of Our Lives actor Francisco San Martin has died.—
Escher Walcott,
People.com,
21 Jan. 2025
-
High Fidelity actor John Cusack told his followers not to bother watching the inauguration.—
Kristen Waggoner,
Newsweek,
21 Jan. 2025
Noun
-
Gould observed that Jerry Falwell had taken up the mountebank’s mission of William Jennings Bryan.—
Michael Hiltzik,
Los Angeles Times,
26 July 2024
-
Now, this pallid Color Purple epitomizes the artistic dearth of an era when a cultural mountebank like Winfrey uses race and feminist guile to cheat us of America’s most creative achievements.—
Armond White,
National Review,
3 Jan. 2024
Noun
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Amy's every interaction is loaded with dramatic irony, but the audience isn't in a good spot knowing that her teenage daughter actually hates her or that the new chief of internal medicine is a quack who killed a patient.—
Kelly Lawler,
USA TODAY,
8 Jan. 2025
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The nomination to any responsible position of quacks like Robert F. Kennedy Jr. or Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo would put her to that test.—
Orlando Sentinel and South Florida Sun Sentinel Editorial Boards,
Orlando Sentinel,
11 Nov. 2024
Noun
-
For a Gen X-er raised on movies that skewered phonies and wannabes, the thought of being a poser was, in the end, far more offensive to his sensibilities than being potentially bland.—
Rachel Syme,
The New Yorker,
23 Dec. 2024
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The answer is important because being a phony is hard work.—
LaRae Quy,
Forbes,
20 Dec. 2024
Noun
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When Trump’s civil case on financial fraud ramped up in New York City — and through methods that are highly creative (and highly off-the-record) — Brourman finagled a seat with the other courtroom sketch artists, who were not entirely welcoming to this stilettoed upstart in their midst.—
Alex Morris,
Rolling Stone,
16 Jan. 2025
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Previous installments examined fraud in local governments, police vetting requirements and the water crisis in Kansas.—
Jonathan Shorman,
Kansas City Star,
16 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near impostor
Cite this Entry
“Impostor.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/impostor. Accessed 30 Jan. 2025.
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