feign

Or that night we stumbled onto a giant controlled burn and saw the flames reach up and tickle the moon and recognized the gnawing feeling that fire is something we can only feign to control.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 5, 2026

Our civilization shouldn’t feign excessive humility and modesty while America inspires creative drive.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 18, 2025

Experts have previously warned the potential for AI chatbots to make things up, be overly-encouraging, and feign empathy can pose risks to young and vulnerable people.

From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2025

The Vault dwellers may have chin-tentacles and sinister secrets, but they understand something essential.In the post-apocalypse, the ability to feign normalcy — and further, to curate pleasure — is a luxury.

From Salon ● May 12, 2025

Would he feign the role of a suffering lover, on the chance that we would be seen?

From "Ophelia" by Lisa Klein

Like everything else in the movie, it’s artifice that feigns at being fact.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 26, 2025

When I confront the group of boys, one feigns innocence, claiming he’d been speaking to his friend.

From BBC ● Nov. 9, 2024

Lydia, who craves to be seen by her family, feigns craving death because of her relationship with Barbara and Adam, who live in the afterlife.

From Salon ● Sep. 11, 2024

Even if he feigns interest in what all the fuss is about.

From Seattle Times ● Nov. 21, 2022

While Jasper, his spaniel ears a-droop, feigns indifference to the arrival of the cakes.

From "Rebecca" by Daphne du Maurier

Nevertheless, a judge was impressed, or feigned to be, with an obviously disingenuous antitrust claim.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

Once you’ve filled out your W-4 and feigned attentiveness during HR trainings, your new boss will start emailing you with tasks.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 14, 2026

When another student enters and surveys the bodies on the ground in poorly feigned shock, few manage to suppress their giggles.

From Salon ● Jul. 29, 2025

For real — not like the astonishment Zoë Kravitz feigned in a Golden Globes-set episode of “The Studio,” faking disbelief at the podium when she knew all along that she was going to win.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 27, 2025

“Yes, I am responsible,” she said, and feigned a simpering smile.

From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

In some cases, bureaucrats resorted to ostentatious gestures and outright fraud, feigning adherence to unrealistic targets and masking underperformance.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 28, 2026

Spaeny: It’s what every actor is thinking except they’re feigning ...

From Los Angeles Times ● May 27, 2026

However, the “Hannah Montana” star did not end her mockery there—going on to accuse Cooper of feigning innocence about the proximity of their properties.

From MarketWatch ● Mar. 31, 2026

In November, Leeds United manager Daniel Farke accused Manchester City keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma of feigning injury to "bend the rules".

From BBC ● Jan. 19, 2026

The two of them stood close to each other feigning the movements of boxers, their heads weaving, bobbing, tucked tight behind ready hands.

From "Native Speaker" by Chang-rae Lee