fauxpen

F4A1U1X8P3E1N1

adjective

Open, but with restrictions.

Scrabble 19
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Meanings

adjectivefauxpen (not comparable)
  1. not comparableuncommonlicense etc.Open, but with restrictions.

    I fear that some APIs—especially ones that lock us into dependency on commercial intermediaries that may fail—are also a breed of fauxpen.

    2009 August 26, Doc Searls, “Open vs. Fauxpen”, in Linux Journal
    1 more example

    As a university we have for the most part stayed away from organizations and efforts that we perceive as “fauxpen” or engaging in “open washing”.

    2016, Patrick Blessinger, TJ Bliss, editors, Open Education: International Perspectives in Higher Education, Open Book Publishers, →ISBN

Origin

Blend of faux + open.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

fauxpen. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/fauxpen

MLA

“fauxpen.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/fauxpen. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “fauxpen,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/fauxpen.

Source: fauxpen on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.