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sham

[/ʃæm/]
noun/verb/adjectivepl: shams
fingimento, fraude, simulação
1. A person or thing that is not what it appears to be; a fake or pretense
Their marriage was a complete sham.
O casamento deles era uma completa fraude.
2. To pretend or feign something; to fake
He shammed illness to avoid going to work.
Ele fingiu doença para evitar ir ao trabalho.
3. Not genuine; fake or false
The diamond turned out to be sham jewelry.
O diamante se mostrou ser uma joia falsa.
NYC Slang
faker, phony, bogus
Synonyms
fakefraudpretensedeceptioncounterfeitfabrication
Antonyms
genuineauthenticreallegitimate

Regional Variations

General Brazilian
farsa, fingimento, fraude
Most common usage across Brazil
Rio de Janeiro
conto, cilada
Informal, colloquial usage
São Paulo
fake, simulação
Often uses English loanword 'fake' in informal speech
Portugal
embuste, falsidade, simulação
More formal, traditional Portuguese usage

Related Idioms & Phrases

sham up - to pretend or put on a false appearance
it's all sham - it's completely fake or false
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