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Phony vs Pseudo - What's the difference?

phony | pseudo |

As adjectives the difference between phony and pseudo

is that phony is fraudulent; fake; having a misleading appearance while pseudo is other than what is apparent, a sham.

As nouns the difference between phony and pseudo

is that phony is a person who assumes an identity or quality other than their own while pseudo is an intellectually pretentious person; a pseudointellectual.

phony

English

Alternative forms

* phoney

Adjective

(er)
  • Fraudulent; fake; having a misleading appearance.
  • A good jeweler should be able to tell a real stone from a phony one.

    Synonyms

    * (fraudulent) bogus, counterfeit, fake * See also

    Antonyms

    * authentic * genuine

    Derived terms

    * phoniness * phoneyness

    Noun

    (phonies)
  • A person who assumes an identity or quality other than their own.
  • He claims to be a doctor, but he's nothing but a fast-talking phony .
  • A person who professes beliefs or opinions that they do not hold.
  • He's such a phony , he doesn't believe half of what he says.

    Synonyms

    * (faker) dissembler, pretender, fake, faker

    Derived terms

    * phony up, phoney up * Phony War, Phoney War

    pseudo

    English

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • An intellectually pretentious person; a pseudointellectual.
  • A poseur; one who is fake.
  • (travel industry, informal) pseudo-city code
  • (Internet) A pseudonym; a false name used for online anonymity.
  • * 2011 , Divina Frau-Meigs, Media Matters in the Cultural Contradictions of the "Information Society" (page 299)
  • Issues such as verifiability (for age declared), anonymity (in spite of pseudos and avatars) and traceability are at stake
  • References

    * The Australian Concise Oxford Dictionary

    Adjective

    (-)
  • Other than what is apparent, a sham.
  • Insincere.
  • Spurious.
  • References

    * The Australian Concise Oxford Dictionary

    Anagrams

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