Imposturous

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Relating to or marked by deceitful pretending, such as claiming a false identity or false authority to gain trust
2. Describing behavior that deliberately misleads others through fraud, posing as someone or something one is not
3. Given to or consisting of imposture, meaning the practice of passing oneself off under a false name or false credentials

Etymology: "Imposturous" is an alternative spelling of "imposterous," and it is built from "impostor" with the adjective-forming suffix "-ous," meaning "full of" or "characterized by." An impostor is someone who deceives others by pretending to be someone else, so an imposturous person or act is one marked by that kind of pretence. The "-ous" ending is the same one found in words such as "famous" or "dangerous," which attach to a base noun to describe a quality of it. The noun "impostor" comes from the Late Latin "impostor," meaning deceiver, which is itself tied to the Latin verb "imponere," to impose or put upon. The sense of imposing upon someone by deceit gave the noun its meaning. The two spellings, "imposturous" and "imposterous," both follow the same pattern, with the "-ous" suffix attached to the noun's stem, and they represent the same adjective in English.

Synonyms: deceitful, fraudulent, impostorous

Antonyms: honest, genuine