Word | fictitious |
---|---|
Date | June 12, 2020 |
Type | adjective |
Syllables | fik-TISH-us |
Etymology | Fictitious is related to the Medieval Latin word fictīcius, meaning "artificial," "imaginary," "feigned," or "fraudulent." It was first used in English as an antonym for natural. For instance, a fake diamond would be referred to as a fictitious one. This use indicates the word's deeper Latin roots: fictīcius is from the Latin verb fingere, meaning "to mold, fashion, make a likeness of; pretend to be." Nowadays, fictitious is no longer used for physical things shaped by the human hand. Rather, it is typically used for imaginative creations or for feigned emotions. |
Examples | "'Outbreak' follows a team of U.S. Army medical researchers as they struggle to contain a fictitious disease, dubbed the Motaba virus, that's quickly spreading in a California town. In the film, they're successful in halting it in its tracks." — Brent Lang, Variety, 15 Apr. 2020 "Forensic auditors released details of their findings at the last regular trustee meeting, noting that more than $14 million was mismanaged…. About $600,000 was spent on lavish travel by former administrators and on payments to what appears to be a fictitious vendor." — Eva-Marie Ayala, The Dallas Morning News, 1 May 2020 |
Definition | 1 : of, relating to, or characteristic of fiction : imaginary 2 a : conventionally or hypothetically assumed or accepted b of a name : false, assumed 3 : not genuinely felt |
Tags: wordoftheday::adjective
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