pseudo-

See also: pseudo and pseŭdo-

Translingual

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ψευδής (pseudḗs).

Prefix

pseudo-

1. (biology) Not a true, appearing like a true.

Derived terms

Translingual terms prefixed with pseudo-

Pseudacacia

pseudacorus

Pseudoalcippe

Pseudallescheria

pseudoangustatus

Pseudobulweria

Pseudocalyptomena

Pseudocephalozia

Pseudocephaloziella

Pseudocoleodictyospora

Pseuderemias

Pseudofungi

Pseudogekko

Pseudohedya

Pseudohydnum

Pseudolepicolea

Pseudolophocolea

Pseudomonas

Pseudomorpha

Pseudomyrmex

Pseudonaja

Pseudonestor

Pseudoryx

Pseudopeziza

Pseudophoenix

Pseudois

Pseudolirium

Pseudomegaloolithus

Pseudorca

Pseudosasa

Pseudoscarus

Pseudoscops

Pseudoscorpiones

Pseudoseisura

Pseudostellaria

Pseudosuchia

Pseudoterranova

Pseudotsuga

Pseudovermis

pseudovolvox

Pseudowintera

Pseudosphex

Pseudophyllus

English

Alternative forms

• pseud- (prevocalically)

Etymology

Etymology tree

Ancient Greek ψεύδω (pseúdō)

Proto-Indo-European *-os

Proto-Indo-European *-ēs

Ancient Greek -ης (-ēs)

Ancient Greek -ής (-ḗs)

Ancient Greek ψευδής (pseudḗs)der.

Middle English pseudo-

English pseudo-

From Middle English pseudo- (but uncommon before Modern English), from Ancient Greek ψευδής (pseudḗs, “false, lying”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈsjuː.doʊ/
• (yod-dropping) IPA^(key): /ˈsuː.doʊ/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Hyphenation: pseu‧do-

Prefix

pseudo-

1. False; not genuine; fake.

   Synonym: mis-

2. (proscribed) Quasi-; almost.

Derived terms

English terms prefixed with pseudo-

pseudoabelian

pseudoabsence

pseudoacademic

pseudoacanthosis

pseudoaccidental

pseudoachalasia

pseudoachondroplasia

pseudoachromatic

pseudoacinar

pseudoacinus

pseudoacromegaly

pseudoacromial

pseudoacromion

pseudo-acronym

pseudoacronym

pseudoactive

pseudoadaptation

pseudoaddict

pseudoaddicted

pseudoaddiction

pseudoadult

pseudoaerial

pseudaesthesia

pseudoaethalium

pseudoaffectionate

pseudoafferent

pseudoagouti

pseudoainhum

pseudoair

pseudoalbinism

pseudoalbino

pseudoaldosteronism

pseudoalgebra

pseudoalgorithm

pseudoalign

pseudoalignment

pseudoalkaloid

pseudoallele

pseudoallelic

pseudoallelism

pseudoallergic

pseudoallergy

pseudoaltruistic

pseudoamyloid

pseudoanalytical

pseudoanaphylactic

pseudoanaphylaxis

pseudoanatomical

pseudoancestral

pseudandry

pseudoanemia

pseudoanemic

pseudoaneurysm

pseudoangiomatous

pseudoangle

pseudo-anglicism

pseudoannual

pseudoanodontia

pseudoanonymized

pseudo-Anosov

pseudanthium

pseudoanthropomorphic

pseudoanticline

pseudoantique

pseudoapologetic

pseudoapostle

pseudoappendicitis

pseudoapproximation

apseudomorph

pseudoaquatic

pseudoarchaeological

pseudoarchaeology

pseudo-archaic

pseudoarchaism

pseudoarchaist

pseudoarcheology

pseudoargument

pseudoaristocratic

Pseudo-Aristotle

pseudoaromatic

pseudarthrosis

pseudoarthrosis

pseudoarticle

pseudoarticulated

pseudoarticulation

pseudoascetic

pseudoasymmetry

pseudo-atheism

pseudoathletic

pseudoatom

pseudoatomic

pseudoatrophy

pseudoautomatic

pseudoautosomal

pseudoaxial

pseudoaxis

pseudoazimuthal

pseudoazurin

pseudobacteremia

pseudobacteria

pseudobaptigenin

pseudobasaloid

pseudobase

pseudobasifixed

pseudobenevolent

pseudobezoar

pseudobicuspid

pseudobinary

pseudobinaural

pseudobiographical

pseudobiological

pseudobiologist

pseudobiology

pseudobiphasic

pseudobipolar

pseudobisexual

pseudoblock

pseudoboleite

pseudobond

pseudo-borrowing

pseudobranch

pseudobranchia

pseudobranchial

pseudobreccia

pseudobrookite

pseudobubo

pseudobulb

pseudobulbar

pseudobulbil

pseudobulge

pseudobulk

pseudocamptodactyly

pseudocanine

pseudocaniniform

pseudocap

pseudocapacitance

pseudocapacitive

pseudocapacitor

pseudocapacity

pseudocapillary

pseudocapsule

pseudocarapace

pseudocarcinomatous

pseudocardiac

pseudocarp

pseudocastle

pseudocat

pseudocatalase

pseudocatalytic

pseudocatenane

pseudocaterpillar

pseudocaudoside

pseudocele

pseudocelebrity

pseudocell

pseudocellulitis

pseudocelomic

pseudocentipede

pseudocephalon

pseudocereal

pseudochannel

pseudocharacter

pseudocharitable

pseudochemical

pseudochemotaxis

pseudochina

pseudo-Chinese

pseudochiral

pseudochirality

pseudochitin

pseudochitinous

pseudocholinesterase

pseudochromosomal

pseudochromosome

pseudochyle

pseudochylothorax

pseudocilium

pseudocircle

pseudocirrhosis

pseudocirrus

pseudoclasper

pseudoclass

pseudoclassic

pseudoclassical

pseudoclassicism

pseudocleavage

pseudocleft

pseudoclefting

pseudoclerical

pseudoclinical

pseudoclonality

pseudoclubbing

pseudocode

pseudocoded

pseudocodeword

pseudocoding

pseudocoel

pseudocoelom

pseudocoelome

pseudocoelomic

• pseudodiaxial
• pseudodicotomous
• pseudodiequatorial
• pseudo-Latin

Translations

not genuine

• Arabic: زائف-, ^{(please verify)} وَهْمِيّ (wahmiyy)
• Bulgarian: псевдо- (psevdo-)
• Catalan: pseudo- (ca)
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 偽- / 伪- (ngai⁶)

  Mandarin: 偽- / 伪- (zh) (wěi-), 假- (zh) (jiǎ-)

• Czech: pa- (cs), pseudo- (cs)
• Danish: pseudo-, skin-
• Esperanto: pseŭdo- (eo)
• Finnish: sala-, vale-, pseudo- (fi)
• French: pseudo- (fr)
• Galician: pseudo-
• Georgian: ფსევდო- (ka) (psevdo-), კვაზი- (ḳvazi-)
• German: after- (de), schein- (de), pseudo- (de), falsch-
• Greek: ψευδο- (el) (psevdo-)

  Ancient Greek: ψευδο- (pseudo-)

• Hindi: छद्म- (chadma-), कूट- (kūṭ-)
• Hungarian: ál- (hu), pszeudo- (hu)
• Icelandic: gervi-
• Ido: pseudo-
• Interlingua: pseudo-
• Irish: bréag-
• Italian: pseudo- (it)
• Japanese: 擬- (ja) (ぎ-, gi-), 疑似 (ja) (giji)
• Khmer: -ក្លែងក្លាយ (klaengklaay)
• Kurdish:

  Central Kurdish: زِڕ- (zirr-)

  Laki: please add this translation if you can

  Northern Kurdish: zirr- (ku)

  Southern Kurdish: زِڕ- (zirr-)

• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: pseudo-, psevdo-, falsk-

  Nynorsk: pseudo-, psevdo-, falsk-

• Polish: pseudo- (pl), niby- (pl)
• Portuguese: pseudo- (pt)
• Russian: псевдо- (ru) (psevdo-), лже- (ru) (lže-)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: надри-

  Roman: nadri-

• Spanish: pseudo-, seudo-
• Swedish: falsk-, fusk-, pseudo- (sv), kvasi- (sv)
• Tamil: ^{(please verify)} பொய் (ta) (poy), ^{(please verify)} போலி (ta) (pōli)
• Translingual: pseudo-
• Ukrainian: псевдо- (psevdo-)
• Volapük: please add this translation if you can

References

• James A. H. Murray et al., editors (1884–1928), “Pseudo-, combining form”, in A New English Dictionary on Historical Principles (Oxford English Dictionary), volume VII (O–P), London: Clarendon Press, →OCLC, page 1543, column 1.

Further reading

• “pseudo-”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.
• “pseud-, combining form”, in Merriam-Webster.com Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
• John A. Simpson and Edmund S. C. Weiner, editors (1989), “pseudo-, combining form”, in The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd edition, volumes XII (Poise–Quelt), Oxford: Clarendon Press, →ISBN, page 740, column 3. (lists many derived terms)

Anagrams

• psuedo, does up, doupes, psuedo-, souped

Catalan

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ψευδο- (pseudo-).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central) [ˌpsɛw.ðu]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic, Valencia) [ˌpsɛw.ðo]

Prefix

pseudo-

1. pseudo-

Derived terms

Catalan terms prefixed with pseudo-

pseudociència

pseudocientífic

pseudohalogen

pseudohistòric

pseudònim

pseudovector

Czech

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ψευδο- (pseudo-).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [psɛu̯do ]

Prefix

pseudo-

1. pseudo-

   Synonym: pa-

Derived terms

Czech terms prefixed with pseudo-

pseudoargument

pseudofilozof

pseudokód

pseudonáhodný

pseudofilozofie

pseudověda

Related terms

• pseudonym

Further reading

• pseudo- in Slovník afixů užívaných v češtině, 2017

Danish

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ψευδής (pseudḗs).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /søvdo-/, [ˈsœwd̥o-]

Prefix

pseudo-

1. pseudo-

Synonyms

• skin-

Derived terms

Danish terms prefixed with pseudo-

pseudoargument

pseudodebat

pseudodemokrati

pseudovidenskab

pseudovidenskabelig

References

• “pseudo-” in Den Danske Ordbog

Dutch

Etymology

Ultimately from Ancient Greek ψευδής (pseudḗs).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈpsœy̯.doː/

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

pseudo-

1. pseudo-

Derived terms

Dutch terms prefixed with pseudo-

pseudocode

pseudo-efedrine

pseudoniem

pseudowetenschap

Finnish

Etymology

Internationalism (see English pseudo-), ultimately from Ancient Greek ψευδής (pseudḗs).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈpseu̯do-/, [ˈps̠e̞u̯do̞-]

Prefix

pseudo-

1. (usually in loanwords) pseudo- (not genuine)

Derived terms

Finnish terms prefixed with pseudo-

pseudoanglismi

pseudokoodi

pseudokruppi

pseudo-ongelma

pseudosana

pseudotiede

pseudotieteellinen

pseudotieteilijä

pseudovektori

compounds

• pseudoefedriini

Further reading

• “pseudo-”, in Kielitoimiston sanakirja [Dictionary of Contemporary Finnish]‎^[1] (in Finnish) (online dictionary, continuously updated), Kotimaisten kielten keskuksen verkkojulkaisuja 35, Helsinki: Kotimaisten kielten tutkimuskeskus (Institute for the Languages of Finland), 2004–, retrieved 3 July 2023

French

Alternative forms

• pseud- (found before vowels, as in pseudesthésie)

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ψευδο- (pseudo-, “false”), from Ancient Greek ψευδής (pseudḗs, “false, lying”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /psø.do/

• Audio (France (Lyon)):

  (file)

Prefix

pseudo-

1. pseudo-

   pseudo-langue ― fake language

Derived terms

French terms prefixed with pseudo-

pseudobulbe

pseudo-code

pseudo-colonne

pseudogame

pseudogamie

pseudohalogène

pseudohalogénure

pseudoparasitisme

pseudopode

pseudoscalaire

pseudo-science

pseudouridimycine

Further reading

• “pseudo-”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012

German

Alternative forms

• pseud- (before a vowel)

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ψευδής (pseudḗs, “false, lying”).

Pronunciation

• Audio (Germany (Berlin)):

  (file)

Prefix

pseudo-

1. pseudo- (not genuine)

Derived terms

German terms prefixed with pseudo-

Pseudoanglizismus

Pseudoargument

Pseudocode

Pseudogetreide

Pseudokrupp

Pseudophilosophie

Pseudoskorpion

Pseudothrombozytopenie

Pseudowissenschaft

pseudowissenschaftlich

pseudozufällig

Further reading

• “pseudo-” in Duden online
• “pseudo-”, in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache‎^[2] (in German)

Ido

Etymology

Borrowed from Esperanto pseŭdo-, Latin pseudo-, Ancient Greek ψευδής (pseudḗs), English pseudo-, French pseudo-, German pseudo-, Italian pseudo-, Russian псѐвдо- (psèvdo-), Spanish pseudo-.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈpseu̯do/
• Hyphenation: pseu‧do-

Prefix

pseudo-

1. pseudo- (not genuine)

Derived terms

Category Ido terms prefixed with pseudo- not found

Further reading

• pseudo-* in Ido-English Dictionary by L.H. Dyer, 1924

Interlingua

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ψευδο- (pseudo-).

Prefix

pseudo-

1. pseudo- (not genuine)

Derived terms

Category Interlingua terms prefixed with pseudo- not found

References

• Alexander Gode; Hugh Blair (1951), Interlingua Grammar, International Auxiliary Language Association, Inc., page 110

Italian

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ψευδο- (pseudo-).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˌpsɛw.do/
• Hyphenation: psèu‧do-

Prefix

pseudo-

1. pseudo-

Derived terms

Italian terms prefixed with pseudo-

pseudoalogeno

pseudoanglicismo

pseudoartrosi

pseudobiologico

pseudobulbo

pseudocarpio

pseudoceloma

pseudocisti

pseudocodice

pseudoconcetto

pseudocupola

pseudodemocratico

pseudoepifragma

pseudepigrafo

pseudoepigrafo

pseudoetimologia

pseudoetimologico

pseudofilosofo

pseudofisico

pseudofrutto

pseudogene

pseudogotta

pseudogravidanza

pseudointellettuale

pseudoletterato

pseudomembranoso

pseudomicelio

pseudomorfo

pseudomorfosi

pseudonazionalismo

pseudonazionalista

pseudonimo

pseudoparalisi

pseudopecora

pseudoplastico

pseudopodio

pseudoprofeta

pseudoreticolato

pseudoreumatismo

pseudoriemanniano

pseudoscalare

pseudoscarlattina

pseudoscientifico

pseudoscienza

pseudoscienziata

pseudoscienziato

pseudosimmetria

pseudosmeraldo

pseudosoluzione

pseudostratificato

pseudotumore

pseudouridina

pseudovettore

pseudovulcanismo

pseudanzio

Latin

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ψευδής (pseudḗs, “lying, false”).

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): [ˈpsɛu̯.dɔ]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): [ˈpsɛːu̯.do]

Prefix

pseudo-

1. false, fake

Derived terms

Latin terms prefixed with pseudo-

pseudapostolus

pseudoapostolus

pseudocaninus

pseudochristus

pseudoflavus

pseudoscientia

Malay

Etymology

Internationalism (see English pseudo-), ultimately from Ancient Greek ψευδής (pseudḗs).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /(p)sudo-/, /(p)seudo-/
• Hyphenation: (p)su‧do-, (p)séu‧do-

Prefix

pseudo-

1. pseudo- (not genuine)

Derived terms

Category Malay terms prefixed with pseudo- not found

Further reading

• "pseudo" in Pusat Rujukan Persuratan Melayu (PRPM) [Malay Literary Reference Centre (PRPM)] (in Malay), Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 2017

Polish

Etymology

Etymology tree

Ancient Greek ψεύδω (pseúdō)

Proto-Indo-European *-os

Proto-Indo-European *-ēs

Ancient Greek -ης (-ēs)

Ancient Greek -ής (-ḗs)

Ancient Greek ψευδής (pseudḗs)der.

Polish pseudo-

Derived from Ancient Greek ψευδής (pseudḗs).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /psɛw.dɔ/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛwdɔ
• Syllabification: pseu‧do-
• Homophone: pseudo

Prefix

pseudo-

1. pseudo- (not genuine)

   Synonym: niby-

   ‎pseudo- + ‎etymologia → ‎pseudoetymologia

Derived terms

Polish terms prefixed with pseudo-

pseudoanglicyzm

pseudoargument

pseudoefedryna

pseudoetymologia

pseudohodowla

pseudokibic

pseudokod

pseudonauka

Further reading

• “pseudo-”, in Polish dictionaries at PWN‎^[3] (in Polish)
• J. Karłowicz, A. Kryński, W. Niedźwiedzki, editors (1912), “pseudo-”, in Słownik języka polskiego (in Polish), volume 5, Warsaw, page 411

Portuguese

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ψευδής (pseudḗs).

Pronunciation

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˌpsew.do/, /piˌsew.do/, /-du/

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /psew.dɔ/ [psew.ðɔ]

Prefix

pseudo-

1. pseudo- (not genuine)

   pseudociência ― pseudoscience

Derived terms

Portuguese terms prefixed with pseudo-

pseudociência

pseudocientífico

pseudocódigo

pseudonormal

pseudónimo

Further reading

• “pseudo-”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026
• “pseudo-”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026

Romanian

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ψευδής (pseudḗs).

Prefix

pseudo-

1. pseudo- (not genuine)

Derived terms

Romanian terms prefixed with pseudo-

pseudoacid

pseudoafix

pseudoartist

pseudoautonomie

pseudobacă

pseudocilindru

pseudococaină

pseudocod

pseudoconcept

pseudocreație

pseudocultură

pseudodemocrație

pseudoetimologism

pseudofilozofie

pseudoistoric

pseudoistorie

pseudoliberalism

pseudoliterat

pseudoliteratură

pseudometaforă

pseudomilitar

pseudonim

pseudopatriot

pseudopatriotic

pseudopod

pseudoprefix

pseudoproblemă

pseudoprofesor

pseudosavant

pseudoscorpie

pseudoscorpion

pseudosferă

pseudosocialist

pseudoștiință

pseudoștiințific

pseudovaloare

Spanish

Alternative forms

• seudo-

Etymology

Etymology tree

Ancient Greek ψεύδω (pseúdō)

Proto-Indo-European *-os

Proto-Indo-European *-ēs

Ancient Greek -ης (-ēs)

Ancient Greek -ής (-ḗs)

Ancient Greek ψευδής (pseudḗs)

Ancient Greek ψευδο- (pseudo-)der.

Spanish pseudo-

Derived from Ancient Greek ψευδο- (pseudo-).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /seudo/ [seu̯.ð̞o]
• Syllabification: pseu‧do-

Prefix

pseudo-

1. pseudo- (not genuine)

Derived terms

Spanish terms prefixed with pseudo-

pseudoalcaloide

pseudoaleatorio

pseudoaneurisma

pseudoanglicismo

pseudoartrosis

pseudobulbo

pseudocardenal

pseudociencia

pseudocientífico

pseudocódigo

pseudoconsulta

pseudodemocracia

pseudodemocrático

pseudodistancia

pseudoelección

pseudoestratificado

pseudofeminista

pseudogén

pseudogota

pseudohermafroditismo

pseudohipoparatiroidismo

pseudohistoria

pseudohistórico

pseudomembrana

pseudomembranoso

pseudopaciente

pseudopolítico

pseudopseudohipoparatiroidismo

pseudopulgar

pseudosindicato

pseudotallo

pseudotecnología

pseudoterapia

Further reading

• “pseudo-”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025

Swedish

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ψευδο- (pseudo-).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /²(p)sɛvdʊ-/

Words with this prefix receive a grave accent. The first pitch peak is on the syllable pseudo while the second peak is placed later in the prefixed word.

Prefix

pseudo-

1. pseudo-

Derived terms

Swedish terms prefixed with pseudo-

pseudohändelse

pseudokod

pseudospektral

pseudovetenskap

pseudovetenskaplig