Meanings
pseud1
plural pseuds
- derogatoryAn intellectually pretentious person; a poseur.
He and two friends were known as “the three pseuds” among the rest of the boys, who thought them too clever by half.
2012 November 9, Decca Aitkenhead, “Robbie Coltrane: ‘I take no nonsense’”, in The Guardian1 more example
Say that you're taking this [The Anatomy of Melancholy] on holiday, as poor Alain de Botton did, and you get heaved straight into Pseuds' Corner.
2001 August 18, Nicholas Lezard, “The book to end all books”, in The Guardian, →ISSN
pseud2
- colloquialmedicinePseudomonas bacteria.
pseud3
Synonyms & antonyms
nouna person who makes deceitful pretenses
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Ancient Greekψευδής“false, lying”
- Englishpseud
Possible clipping of pseudointellectual. From Ancient Greek ψευδής (pseudḗs, “false, lying”).
More words from Ancient Greek
Full word history & related roots →Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with pseud
Sounds the same
Cite this entry
pseud. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pseud
“pseud.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pseud. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “pseud,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pseud.
Source: pseud on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.