Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

counterfeit

/ˈkaʊn.tɚˌfɪt/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.39 in modern English

Syllables: coun-ter-feit
IPA: /ˈkaʊn.tɚˌfɪt/

16

Scrabble Score

11

Letters

3

Syllables

9

Unique Chars

Meaning

adj

False, especially of money; intended to deceive or carry appearance of being genuine.

adj

adj

Assuming the appearance of something; deceitful; hypocritical.

noun

A non-genuine article; a fake.

noun

One who counterfeits; a counterfeiter.

noun

That which resembles another thing; a likeness; a portrait; a counterpart.

Obsolete

noun

An impostor; a cheat.

Obsolete

verb

To falsely produce what appears to be official or valid; to produce a forged copy of.

Transitive verb

Example Sentences

"This counterfeit watch looks like the real thing, but it broke a week after I bought it."
"Finding out Irish people might have been slaves is kind of like finding a counterfeit bill where you're like, "You think I can use this for something?""
"counterfeit sympathy"
"How Cownterfet Cowntenaunce of the new get / With Crafty Conueyauance dothe smater and flater, / And Cloked Collucyoun is brought in to clater / With Courtely Abusyoun; […]"
"an arrant counterfeit rascal"
"Never call a true piece of gold a counterfeit."

Etymology

From Middle English counterfeit, countrefet, from Anglo-Norman countrefait, from Old French contrefait, from Latin contra- (“against”) + Latin facere (“to make”). Piecewise doublet of contrafactum.

Origin

Source language: Middle English

Word Breakdown

Root: counterfeit, countrefait, contrefait, contra-, facere

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˈkaʊn.tɚˌfɪt/

Usage

Inflected Forms

counterfeits (plural) counterfeits (present, singular) counterfeiting (participle, present) counterfeited (participle, past) counterfeited (past)

Derived Forms

anticounterfeit counterfeitly counterfeitment counterfeitness noncounterfeit uncounterfeit anticounterfeiting counterfeitability counterfeitable counterfeitingly uncounterfeited

Synonyms

imitative forgery forge fake

Questions

How do you pronounce counterfeit?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈkaʊn.tɚˌfɪt/.
What does counterfeit mean?: False, especially of money; intended to deceive or carry appearance of being genuine.
Where does counterfeit come from?: It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce counterfeit

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “counterfeit”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈkaʊn.tɚˌfɪt/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
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