counterfeit

UK/ˈkawntəˌfɪt/US/ˈkaʊn.tɚˌfɪt/

adjectiveB2+Common in everyday speech and writing · #4,728 of 15,258neutral

Counterfeit means made as an illegal fake copy of the real branded thing. Counterfeit notes, counterfeit goods, a counterfeit passport.

The difference from an imitation is the intent to deceive — a copy sold as a copy is not counterfeit. Banknotes carry watermarks, threads and raised print because each is easy to check and hard to reproduce. The word is literally made against.

Definitions of counterfeit

1adjectivecounterfeitMade as an illegal fake copy.B2+
“The shopkeeper refused the note because he thought it was counterfeit.”

counterfeit is a quality of fakery.

Where it comes from

Old French contrefait means made against or imitated, from Latin contra, against, plus facere, to make.

Middle English
countrefet
English, today
counterfeit

From Middle English countrefet. From Middle English counterfeit, countrefet, from Anglo-Norman countrefait, from Old French contrefait, from Latin contra- (“against”) + Latin facere (“to make”). contrafactum.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Practised in Shopping & Money, Spying & Secrecy

Practise this word

counterfeit in the wild

With the introduction of paper money, counterfeiting as a whole has also changed.
Counterfeit money
Today, some of the most realistic counterfeit banknotes are called Superdollars because of their high quality and imitation of the real US dollar.
Counterfeit money
Typically of lower quality, counterfeit goods may pose health and safety risks.
Counterfeit consumer good
Various organizations have attempted to estimate the size of the global counterfeit market.
Counterfeit consumer good

From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. These sentences were written by other people about their own subjects; they are here to show the word at work, not as anybody’s opinion.

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