What does faked mean?
"Faked" is the past tense and past participle of the verb "fake," meaning to create something counterfeit or to pretend that something is true when it is not. It covers both physical deception — faked passports, paintings, or signatures — and emotional pretence, as when someone faked a smile or faked illness. As an adjective, "faked" describes anything forged or fraudulently passed off as authentic, carrying strongly negative connotations of dishonesty and intent to deceive. The word appears frequently in news reporting on fraud and forgery, in discussions of art authentication, and in casual talk about social performance. Related forms include "fake," "faker," and "faking," and the phrase "fake it till you make it" has given the verb a more playful, aspirational edge in modern usage alongside its serious forensic sense.
Past tense and past participle of "fake": made or produced a fraudulent copy of something; pretended or feigned something.
"He faked the lab results to secure the grant."
Takes both concrete objects (documents, artworks) and intangible ones (emotions, symptoms) as objects.
Counterfeit, forged, or not genuine; having been deliberately misrepresented as authentic.
"Customs officers seized a shipment of faked designer handbags."
The verb "fake" was once low slang for a thief's trick — today it's the word behind some of history's most audacious deceptions.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of faked
The verb "fake" emerged in English in the early nineteenth century, originally as thieves' slang meaning to do, make, or tamper with something. Its precise origin is uncertain, though it may derive from German dialect sources such as "fegen" (to sweep or polish), which gave rise to German "faken" in the sense of cleaning up. By the mid-nineteenth century it had settled into its modern senses of counterfeiting and pretending, later yielding the noun "fake." No widely accepted cognates exist outside these Germanic roots.
Related word forms
How faked is actually used
"Faked" is common in both formal journalism and everyday speech. In informal American English, "fake it" often appears in the idiom "fake it till you make it," meaning to act confident in a role before gaining real competence.
Easily confused with faked
"Faked" means forged or counterfeited, while "flaked" means broke off in small pieces or (informally) failed to show up as promised.