imposture
im.pos.ture \im-'pa:s-ch*r\ n [LL impostura, fr. L impositus, impostus, pp.
of imponere)X : the act or conduct of an impostor : DECEPTION; esp : fra
udulent impersonationCOUNTERFEIT mean a thing imposed on one side by false
pretenses. IMPOSTURE applies to any situation in which a spurious object or
action is passed off as genuine; FRAUD usu. implies a deliberate perversion
of the truth, but applied to a person it may suggest merely pretense and
hypocrisy; SHAM applies to fraudulent imitation of a real thing or action;
FAKE implies an imitation of or substitution for the genuine but does not
necessarily imply dishonesty; HUMBUG suggests elaborate pretense usu. so
flagrant as to be transparent; COUNTERFEIT applies esp. to the close
imitation of something valuable SYN syn IMPOSTURE, FRAUD, SHAM, FAKE,
HUMBUG,