Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary - pretense

 or pretence  noun  Etymology: Middle English, probably modification of Medieval Latin pretensio, irregular from Latin praetendere  Date: 15th century  1. a claim made or implied; especially one not supported by fact  2.  a. mere ostentation ; pretentiousness confuse dignity with pomposity and ~ — Bennett Cerf  b. a pretentious act or assertion  3. an inadequate or insincere attempt to attain a certain condition or quality  4. professed rather than real intention or purpose ; pretext was there under false ~s  5. make-believe, fiction  6. false show ; simulation saw through his ~ of indifference