false
UK /fɔːls/ · US /fɔls/ adjective, verb, adverb, noun
Forms falser falsest falses falsing falsed
- adjective (of a statement) Untrue, not factual, factually incorrect.
- adjective Based on factually incorrect premises. “false legislation, false punishment”
- adjective Spurious, artificial. “false teeth”
- adjective (logic) Of a state in Boolean logic that indicates a negative result.
- adjective Uttering falsehood; dishonest or deceitful. “a false witness”
- adjective Not faithful or loyal, as to obligations, allegiance, vows, etc.; untrue; treacherous. “a false friend, lover, or subject; false to promises”
- adjective Not well founded; not firm or trustworthy; erroneous. “a false conclusion; a false construction in grammar”
- adjective Not essential or permanent, as parts of a structure which are temporary or supplemental.
- verb (electronics, telecommunications, of a decoder) To incorrectly decode noise as if it were a valid signal.
- verb To begin a race before being instructed to do so; to do a false start.
- verb (obsolete) To violate, to betray (a promise, an agreement, one’s faith, etc.).
- verb (obsolete) To counterfeit, to forge.
- verb (obsolete) To make false, to corrupt from something true or real.
- adverb In a dishonest and disloyal way; falsely.
- noun One of two options on a true-or-false test, that not representing true. “The student received a failing grade for circling every true and false on her quiz.”
- adjective (electronics) one of two states of a Boolean variable; logic 0.
Synonyms
erroneous fallacious bastard counterfactual off counterfeit fictitious inaccurate incorrect invented made up nonfactual nontrue nontruthful pseudo- spurious untrue untruthful unveracious unveridical mistaken delusive fake faux imitation simulated off-key sour assumed fictive
Antonyms
Etymology
From Middle English false, fals, from Old English fals (“false; counterfeit; fraudulent; wrong; mistaken”), from Latin falsus (“counterfeit, false; falsehood”), perfect passive participle of fallō (“deceive”). Reinforced in Middle English by Anglo-Norman and Old French fals, faus. Compare Scots fals, false, Saterland Frisian falsk, German falsch, Dutch vals, Swedish and Danish falsk; all from Latin falsus. Displaced native Middle English les, lese, from Old English lēas (“false”); See lease, leasing. Doublet of faux.
The verb is from Middle English falsen, falsien, from Old French falser, from Latin falsō (“falsify”), itself also from falsus; compare French fausser (“to falsify, to distort”).
Webster’s 1913
- adjective Uttering falsehood; unveracious; given to deceit; dishnest; as, a false witness.
- adjective Not faithful or loyal, as to obligations, allegiance, vows, etc.; untrue; treacherous; perfidious; as, a false friend, lover, or subject; false to promises.
- adverb Not truly; not honestly; falsely. "You play me false." Shak.
- verb To report falsely; to falsify. [Obs.] Chaucer.
Etymology [L. falsus, p.p. of fallere to deceive; cf. OF. faus, fals, F. faux, and AS. fals fraud. See Fail, Fall.]
Etymology [L. falsare to falsify, fr. falsus: cf. F. fausser. See False, a.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “false”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details