masquerade

noun

/ˌmæskəˈreɪd/, /ˌmɑːskəˈreɪd/

/ˌmæskəˈreɪd/

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(formal) a way of behaving that hides the truth or a person’s true feelings
- He was tired of the masquerade and wanted the truth to come out.
(especially North American English) a type of party where people wear special costumes and masks over their faces, to hide their identities

Word Originlate 16th cent.: from French mascarade, from Italian mascherata, from maschera ‘mask’.

verb

/ˌmæskəˈreɪd/, /ˌmɑːskəˈreɪd/

/ˌmæskəˈreɪd/

[intransitive]

Verb Forms

present simple I / you / we / they masquerade	/ˌmæskəˈreɪd/, /ˌmɑːskəˈreɪd/ /ˌmæskəˈreɪd/
he / she / it masquerades	/ˌmæskəˈreɪdz/, /ˌmɑːskəˈreɪdz/ /ˌmæskəˈreɪdz/
past simple masqueraded	/ˌmæskəˈreɪdɪd/, /ˌmɑːskəˈreɪdɪd/ /ˌmæskəˈreɪdɪd/
past participle masqueraded	/ˌmæskəˈreɪdɪd/, /ˌmɑːskəˈreɪdɪd/ /ˌmæskəˈreɪdɪd/
-ing form masquerading	/ˌmæskəˈreɪdɪŋ/, /ˌmɑːskəˈreɪdɪŋ/ /ˌmæskəˈreɪdɪŋ/

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masquerade as something to pretend to be something that you are not
- commercial advertisers masquerading as private individuals
- (figurative) The local paper is full of gossip masquerading as news.
Word Originlate 16th cent.: from French mascarade, from Italian mascherata, from maschera ‘mask’.