How to Use make-believe in a Sentence

make-believe

1 of 2 noun
  • Maybe the whole problem was that our goals as adults were far more make-believe than any goals most kids had.
    — Jay Kirk, New York Times, 20 Apr. 2023
  • As a bonus, this reusable fake is a fun prop to keep around for make-believe doctor visits.
    — Kimberly Stoney, Parents, 21 Mar. 2024
  • Children play elaborate make-believe games with their toys and role-playing games with their peers.
    — Andrew Shtulman, WSJ, 1 Dec. 2023
  • That’s just completely make-believe.
    — Lilah Ramzi, Vogue, 4 Dec. 2025
  • Even the quotes and internal citations were just make-believe.
    — Faustine Ngila, Quartz, 29 May 2023
  • Folks like make-believe scares before facing the real-life horror of grocery store prices.
    — Literary Hub, 23 Oct. 2025
  • Now, a new study suggests that such make-believe play is not a uniquely human talent, but a skill that great apes also possess.
    — Amarachi Orie, CNN Money, 9 Feb. 2026
  • Arko uses vivid colors to create a make-believe world for his main character, also called Arko.
    — Vanessa Infanzon, Charlotte Observer, 31 Jan. 2024
  • The book is also a meditation on the very fine line between make-believe and reality.
    — The Week Us, theweek, 18 Jan. 2024
  • In the Hamptons, summer types don’t wax on about make-believe fishing docks or get overly nostalgic about a mom-and-pop donut shop.
    — Holly Peterson, Town & Country, 31 Aug. 2023
  • Stella is available in various skin tones and comes with a magnetic pacifier that little ones can use for make-believe play.
    — Christine Luff, Parents, 27 Feb. 2024
  • No wonder those of us who are socialized to make-believe and fantasize have for centuries been the people dreaming of a better world.
    — Time, 13 June 2023
  • There’s also a comforting simplicity in the narratives of this make-believe world.
    — Katrina Stack, The Conversation, 16 Apr. 2026
  • Meanwhile, O’Rourke kept a brave smile on her face, eager to step onto set and lose herself in make-believe before the cameras.
    — Stephanie Nolasco, FOXNews.com, 13 Mar. 2026
  • And in Ukraine, youngsters tussle in make-believe war, imitating soldiers as the real conflict rages on.
    — Juliana Kim, NPR, 5 Oct. 2025
  • Alongside her, child actors dance and frolic with shadow puppetry in the land of make-believe, where youths go on adventures and learn math, science and reading skills.
    — Tribune News Service, Baltimore Sun, 13 Jan. 2026
  • Alongside her, child actors dance and frolic with shadow puppetry in the land of make-believe, where youths go on adventures and learn math, science and reading skills.
    — Darcel Rockett, Chicago Tribune, 3 Jan. 2026
  • The first point is exactly the make-believe reality that net neutralizers want people to think exists.
    — Michael O'Rielly, National Review, 26 Oct. 2023
  • Lucky for those of us who think of wellness lifestyles as spiritual make-believe for people with money, those are still the kinds of songs Musgraves wants to write.
    — Chris Richards, Washington Post, 15 Mar. 2024
  • But this time around, the killer is assumed to be someone involved in the theater — a place where actors have perfected the art of lying and make-believe through performance.
    — Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 26 July 2023
  • At the start, a young girl in a scarlet raincoat traipses across the grass of an English country house as a white horse gallops past, as if out of a vision or a child’s make-believe.
    — Zachary Barnes, WSJ, 27 Oct. 2023
  • My favorite game was make-believe jobs — doctor, lawyer, President of the Republic of Italy.
    — Photovogue, Vogue, 27 Nov. 2025
  • What happens when make-believe and surrogacy abut reality?
    — Mike Ryan, IndieWire, 20 Nov. 2025
  • View full post on Instagram Zooey gave us the full tour of the playhouse including a trip down two slides, even showing us her the make-believe office and guest house.
    — Maggie Horton, Country Living, 5 Aug. 2023
  • If traversing Main Street, take a moment to reflect on areas most guests will walk past, such as side alleys ringing with the frenzy of the make-believe dentistry.
    — Todd Martens, Los Angeles Times, 20 Apr. 2023
  • Macmillan immersed herself in make-believe, admiring how nails could enliven a fantasy version of herself.
    — Kaleigh Werner, Footwear News, 31 Oct. 2025
  • All jobs have a performative aspect to them, but when people engage in make-believe in exchange for money, there’s often a devaluation of that work.
    — Erin Qualey, Vulture, 15 Apr. 2026
  • For the models, there is real money to be made – though it could only be spent in the make-believe world of the scam compound and its malls, cinemas and hotels, according to Sara.
    — Ladan Anoushfar, CNN Money, 24 Nov. 2025
  • So how about, say, Southern California, the birthplace of American make-believe and the modern theme park?
    — Todd Martens, Los Angeles Times, 20 Mar. 2024
  • Disney, after all, is synonymous with kids’ stuff, with make-believe, and sports tends to play a somewhat secondary role alongside all the zeitgeist-shaping IP.
    — Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 18 Mar. 2026

make-believe

2 of 2 adjective
  • Kids just call it make-believe.
    — Mac Barnett, Longreads, 5 May 2026
  • Michael’s personal life was also steeped in make-believe.
    — Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 24 Apr. 2026
  • Now, there is a brand-new way to immerse yourself in the magical, make-believe worlds that delight us on screen.
    — Rebecca Angel Baer, Southern Living, 19 June 2026
  • Johansson may have been in character while wearing the shoes, but there’s nothing make-believe about their comfort.
    — Averi Baudler, PEOPLE, 19 May 2026
  • Tesshi Nakagawa’s scenic design is like a toy kingdom that induces the audience into a state of make-believe.
    — Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 13 May 2026
  • The counterargument is that the world is filled with so many visible atrocities right now that a make-believe movie poster seems like the least of our problems.
    — Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 20 Apr. 2026
  • Mention of the farm brought to mind a make-believe oasis of sunshine, warm fields of thick, green grass, fat red apples hanging from a tree, oats mixed with brown sugar in the trough, and a cool, clear stream winding through the center of it all.
    — Will MacKin, New Yorker, 28 June 2026
  • The rhapsodies about Willow, paired with the silence surrounding the difficult dogs, contribute to a sense of make-believe and avoidance that pervade Biden’s memoir.
    — Amy Davidson Sorkin, New Yorker, 9 June 2026
  • Goodman became more complex through the contemplation of her fragile archive and its splintering possibilities, even if much of the information would elude a fact-checker or fall into the realm of make-believe.
    — Literary Hub, 13 May 2026
  • But just as much of its humor came from portraying displays of everyday decency as the stuff of Hollywood make-believe, on par with the cinematic catharsis of a high-stakes Damon vehicle.
    — Erik Adams, The Atlantic, 10 May 2026

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'make-believe.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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