Phoney: meaning, definitions and examples

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phoney

[ ˈfəʊni ]

^{Context #1}

informal

Not genuine or real; fake or counterfeit.

Synonyms

bogus, counterfeit, fake, false, fraudulent

Examples of usage

The designer handbag she bought turned out to be phoney.
His phoney smile fooled no one.

^{Context #2}

informal

A fraudulent person or thing.

Synonyms

charlatan, deceiver, fake, fraud, imposter

Examples of usage

He was exposed as a phoney who had been lying about his qualifications.
The company turned out to be a phoney, scamming people out of their money.

Translations

Translations of the word "phoney" in other languages:

🇵🇹 falso

🇮🇳 झूठा

🇩🇪 falsch

🇮🇩 palsu

🇺🇦 підроблений

🇵🇱 fałszywy

🇯🇵 偽の

🇫🇷 faux

🇪🇸 falso

🇹🇷 sahte

🇰🇷 가짜의

🇸🇦 زائف

🇨🇿 falešný

🇸🇰 falošný

🇨🇳 假的

🇸🇮 lažen

🇮🇸 falskur

🇰🇿 жалған

🇬🇪 ყალბი

🇦🇿 saxta

🇲🇽 falso

Word origin

The word 'phoney' originated in the late 19th century in American English, derived from the British English 'fawney' meaning a gilded brass ring used to deceive. Over time, 'phoney' came to mean something fake or counterfeit, both in terms of objects and people. The term has since become widely used in informal contexts to describe something or someone that is not genuine or real.