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pretender

pretender

5 8.8
A person who claims a right to a throne without a real title
  • noun
  • /prɪˈtɛndər/
translation icon : pretendiente
  • And James, the aristocratic Jacobite, pretender to the throne.

Examples

  • We must face the fact that, in the eyes of Europe... ...you are a pretender to the throne of England.

  • And when the hands of the clock strike 12, that precious little pretender to my throne will be gone!

  • Will any other pretender to his throne please step forward?

  • Claimed to be the pretender to the throne of Russia?

    Fiction book (1998)
  • Louis is in the Bastille, it seems, and the pretender has gone to church.

  • There's a pretender to my throne.

    Fiction book (2001)
  • Well, unpatriotic activities, I suppose; of which collecting money for the support of Prince Charles Edward Stuart, pretender to the throne, was definitely one.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • Georgie must have felt like he was there to inflict the will of the masses on this pretender to the throne.

    Fiction book (2002)
  • In this scene, the playwright kinetically portrays Spain's predicament of being besieged on all sides by foreign pretenders to the throne.

    Academic text (1998)
  • Will any other pretender to his throne please step forward?

Synonyms

faux queen
vspretender
  • Neologism
9.9

A woman who pretends to be a queen but has no real royal title

covers anyone claiming a throne or high office rather than only women
arrogator
vspretender
  • Offensive
9.9

A person who claims rights or praise they have not earned

is about claiming a throne or high office without a proud attitude
four-flusher
vspretender
  • Offensive
9.9

A person who pretends to have skills or money to impress others

is about claiming a throne or high office rather than faking abilities

How Legitimate

heir
179 4.6
ruler
153 2.1
claimant
  • Specialized
15 5.1
pretender
5 8.8
usurper
11 8.6

Surface Forms

pretender singular
pretenders plural

Morphology

pretender = pretend (transparent) = pretend + er

The agentive suffix '-er' added to the verb 'pretend' yields 'one who pretends', a straightforward and productive formation.

Etymology

Pretender comes from Latin parts prae- 'before' and tendere 'to stretch', and from Old French pretendre which meant 'to claim'. So a pretender is someone who 'puts forward' a claim to a throne or high office, often without a real right.