Meanings
nounforgery (countable and uncountable, plural forgeries)
plural forgeries
- countableuncountableThe act of forging, fabricating, or producing falsely; especially the crime of fraudulently making or altering a writing or signature purporting to be made by another, the false making or material alteration of or addition to a written instrument for the purpose of deceit and fraud.
the forgery of a bond
1 more example
Such a scandal as the prosecution of a brother for forgery—with a verdict of guilty—is a most truly horrible, deplorable, fatal thing. It takes the respectability out of a family perhaps at a critical moment, when the family is just assuming the robes of respectability: […] it is a black spot which all the soaps ever advertised could never wash off.
1892, Walter Besant, “Prologue: Who is Edmund Gray?”, in The Ivory Gate […], New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers, […], →OCLC - countableuncountableThat which is forged, fabricated, falsely devised or counterfeited.
- archaiccountableuncountableAn invention, creation.
Synonyms & antonyms
Similar
Also see
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Latinfabricārī“to frame, construct, fabricate”
- Old Frenchforgier
- Anglo-Normanforger
- Middle Englishforgen
- Englishforgery
Recorded since 1574; from forge + -ery, from Middle English forgen, via Anglo-Norman forger, from Old French forgier, from Latin fabricārī (“to frame, construct, fabricate”), itself from fabrica (“workshop; construction”), from faber (“workman, smith”). (fake): Compare typologically Russian кова́рный (kovárnyj), кова́рство (kovárstvo), ко́зни (kózni) (akin to кова́ть (kovátʹ), ку́зница (kúznica)).
More words from Middle English, Anglo-Norman, Old French
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Afrikaans smedery, vervalsing
- smederythe act of forging metal into shape
- vervalsingthe act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- vervalsingthat which is forged or counterfeited
Bulgarian коване, фалшификация
- коване (kovane)the act of forging metal into shape
- фалшификация (falšifikacija)the act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- фалшификат (falšifikat)that which is forged or counterfeited
Catalan forja, falsificació
- forjathe act of forging metal into shape
- falsificacióthe act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- falsificacióthat which is forged or counterfeited
Chinese Mandarin 偽造 /伪造, 贗品 /赝品
- 偽造 /伪造 (wěizhào)the act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- 贗品 /赝品 (yànpǐn)that which is forged or counterfeited
Czech padělání, padělek
- paděláníthe act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- padělekthat which is forged or counterfeited
- podvrhthat which is forged or counterfeited
Danish falskneri, forfalskning
- falsknerithe act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- forfalskningthe act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- falsknerithat which is forged or counterfeited
- forfalskningthat which is forged or counterfeited
Dutch smederij, smeden
- smederijthe act of forging metal into shape
- smedenthe act of forging metal into shape
- bedrogthe act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- namaakthe act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- vervalsingthe act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- namaakthat which is forged or counterfeited
- vervalsingthat which is forged or counterfeited
Finnish taonta, väärentäminen
- taontathe act of forging metal into shape
- väärentäminenthe act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- väärennösthat which is forged or counterfeited
French forgeage
- forgeagethe act of forging metal into shape
German Schmieden, Fälschen
- Schmiedenthe act of forging metal into shape
- Fälschenthe act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- Fälschungthe act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- Fälschungthat which is forged or counterfeited
- Falsifikatthat which is forged or counterfeited
Greek πλαστογραφία, πλαστογράφηση
- πλαστογραφία (plastografía)the act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- πλαστογράφηση (plastográfisi)that which is forged or counterfeited
Hungarian hamisítás, hamisítvány
- hamisításthe act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- hamisítványthat which is forged or counterfeited
Indonesian pemalsuan
- pemalsuanthe act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
Italian falsificazione
- falsificazionethe act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
Japanese 偽物
- 偽物 (nisemono)that which is forged or counterfeited
Korean 위조
- 위조 (wijo)the act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
Latin falsificatio
- falsificatiothe act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
Malay pemalsuan
- pemalsuanthe act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
Norwegian Bokmål falskneri, forfalskning
- falsknerithe act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- forfalskningthe act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- forfalskingthe act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- falsknerithat which is forged or counterfeited
- forfalskningthat which is forged or counterfeited
- forfalskingthat which is forged or counterfeited
Polish kucie, fałszowanie
- kuciethe act of forging metal into shape
- fałszowaniethe act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- podrabianiethe act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- falsyfikatthat which is forged or counterfeited
- podróbkathat which is forged or counterfeited
Portuguese forjamento, forjadura
- forjamentothe act of forging metal into shape
- forjadurathe act of forging metal into shape
- forjamentothe act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- forjadurathe act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- falsificaçãothat which is forged or counterfeited
Russian ко́вка, подло́г
- ко́вка (kóvka)the act of forging metal into shape
- подло́г (podlóg)the act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- подде́лка (poddélka)the act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- фальсифика́ция (falʹsifikácija)the act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- подде́лка (poddélka)that which is forged or counterfeited
- фальши́вка (falʹšívka)that which is forged or counterfeited
- ли́па (lípa)that which is forged or counterfeited
Spanish forjadura, falsificación
- forjadurathe act of forging metal into shape
- falsificaciónthe act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
- falsificaciónthat which is forged or counterfeited
Swedish förfalskning, falsifikat
- förfalskningthat which is forged or counterfeited
- falsifikatthat which is forged or counterfeited
Turkish sahtecilik
- sahtecilikthe act of forging, fabricating or producing falsely
Cite this entry
APA
forgery. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/forgery
MLA
“forgery.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/forgery. Accessed November 2, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “forgery,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/forgery.
Source: forgery on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.