Impostor
Impostor noun - One who makes false claims of identity or expertise.
Usage example: the man who claimed to be a prince turned out to be an impostor
Pretender is a synonym for impostor in true topic. In some cases you can use "Pretender" instead a noun "Impostor", when it comes to topics like fraud, impersonator, person pretending to be something else. popular alternative
Pretender
Pretender noun - One who makes false claims of identity or expertise.
Usage example: it turns out that the guy who claimed to work for a modeling agency was just a pretender
Impostor is a synonym for pretender in phony topic. You can use "Impostor" instead a noun "Pretender", if it concerns topics such as true. popular alternative
Mutual synonyms
How words are described
| true | true impostor | true pretender |
Both words in one sentence
- The opera Boris Godunov has a noble-sounding motif for Dimitri, the slain Tsarevich, which is appropriated by his impostor, the Pretender.
Source: Leitmotif / Theatre
Cite this Source
Pretender and Impostor. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 21, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/impostor/pretender
Impostor & Pretender. N.p., 2016. Web. 21 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/impostor/pretender>.
Pretender or Impostor. 2016. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/impostor/pretender.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "impostor" and "pretender" have occurred on timeline