1
as in synthetic
being such in appearance only and made with or manufactured from usually cheaper materials
presumably the statue is of factitious marble, because for that price you're not going to get the real stuff
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in false
lacking in natural or spontaneous quality
the factitious friendliness shown by the beauty-pageant contestants to one another
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Recent Examples of factitious
Another was shorting Valeant, the high-flyer with factitious revenue growth.
—
William Baldwin, Forbes.com, 23 Apr. 2025
With this announcement, factitious (in my opinion) concerns about Amazon being behind in GenAI will be reduced big time.
—Sandy Carter, Forbes, 6 Dec. 2024
This is a useful inquiry, because we in the modern world are inundated by manipulated or factitious statistics, fabricated by marketers and politicians, promoted on social media and swallowed whole by news organizations.
—Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 14 Dec. 2023
Their connection to these was as factitious as their previous link to toothpaste.
—David Mamet, National Review, 31 Mar. 2022
Marc Feldman, the American psychiatrist who popularized the term Munchausen by internet, has noticed that most of the cases of factitious disorder that come to his attention involve women.
—Helen Lewis, The Atlantic, 16 Mar. 2021
Almanacs aren’t always — and haven’t always been — so fastidiously factitious.
—Mark Athitakis, Washington Post, 24 Nov. 2020
William Baldwin, Forbes.com, 23 Apr. 2025
With this announcement, factitious (in my opinion) concerns about Amazon being behind in GenAI will be reduced big time.
—Sandy Carter, Forbes, 6 Dec. 2024
This is a useful inquiry, because we in the modern world are inundated by manipulated or factitious statistics, fabricated by marketers and politicians, promoted on social media and swallowed whole by news organizations.
—Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 14 Dec. 2023
Their connection to these was as factitious as their previous link to toothpaste.
—David Mamet, National Review, 31 Mar. 2022
Marc Feldman, the American psychiatrist who popularized the term Munchausen by internet, has noticed that most of the cases of factitious disorder that come to his attention involve women.
—Helen Lewis, The Atlantic, 16 Mar. 2021
Almanacs aren’t always — and haven’t always been — so fastidiously factitious.
—Mark Athitakis, Washington Post, 24 Nov. 2020
Recent Examples of Synonyms for factitious
Adjective
-
The synthetic present isn’t going away.—
Dean DeBiase,
Forbes.com,
24 Jan. 2026
-
Inspired by the shape of a horse’s hoof, Le Perfecteur brush is crafted from synthetic fibre bristles that don’t absorb pigments, but rather deposit them evenly across the skin for ample coverage with little product.—
Kiana Murden,
Vogue,
23 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Their most recent lawsuit alleges trademark infringement and counterfeiting, along with false designation of origin and seeks unspecified damages from the online sellers.—
Paul Flahive,
Austin American Statesman,
30 Jan. 2026
-
His reflections on the controversies and critical snubbings that greeted movies that have since become consensus masterpieces are nuanced without descending into false modesty.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
30 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
One side has tufted pink hearts, while the other is faux shearling that works well beyond Valentine’s Day.—
Jeaneen Russell,
PEOPLE,
28 Jan. 2026
-
The Cotton Exchange has fanciful touches on the exterior, including faux columns and balustrades, and a fountain at the front of the building, dominated by a gryphon, a mythic creature that is part lion, part eagle.—
Jim Halley,
AJC.com,
27 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Others forced users to pause for several seconds between words, which made the conversation feel unnatural.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
1 Feb. 2026
-
If anything, Amorim proved too defiantly wedded to his own ‘way’, a 3-4-2-1 system which had to force-fit players into unnatural roles.—
Carl Anka,
New York Times,
31 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Still, the uncomfortable truth that few are publicly acknowledging is that, by almost every traditional measure of intelligence, artificial general intelligence already exists.—
Mark Minevich,
Forbes.com,
30 Jan. 2026
-
Investors honed in instead on how much Microsoft is spending on investments, whether growth in its Azure cloud business will slow and how long its push into artificial-intelligence technology will take to turn into big profits.—
Stan Choe,
Los Angeles Times,
29 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Thai troops uncovered a sprawling scam complex in Cambodia where international fraud rings used mock police stations and bank replicas to deceive billions of victims globally.—
Sakchai Lalit,
Los Angeles Times,
3 Feb. 2026
-
Stewart reacted in mock offense.—
Taijuan Moorman,
USA Today,
3 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
At one point, Melania is shown watching television coverage of the proceedings on CNN, apparently unconcerned that the network only traffics in fake news.—
Frank Scheck,
HollywoodReporter,
30 Jan. 2026
-
Authorities have said the backpack contained a ghost gun, fake IDs, a notebook and other writings detailing Mangione’s grievances against the private health care system in the United States.—
Adam Reiss,
NBC news,
30 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
The strained awkwardness of Adelina and Alban’s gestures of generosity underscore the class disparity between the city dwellers and their relatives.—
Sheri Linden,
HollywoodReporter,
30 Jan. 2026
-
Diplomatic relations between South Africa and Israel were already severely strained after South Africa — a longtime supporter of the Palestinian people — accused Israel of genocide against Palestinians in Gaza in a case at the United Nations’ top court.—
Gerald Imray,
Los Angeles Times,
30 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Factitious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/factitious. Accessed 4 Feb. 2026.
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