simulacrum

[ sim-yuh-ley-kruhm ]
See synonyms for: simulacrumsimulacra on Thesaurus.com

noun,plural sim·u·la·cra [sim-yuh-ley-kruh]. /ˌsɪm yəˈleɪ krə/.
  1. a slight, unreal, or superficial likeness or semblance.

  2. an effigy, image, or representation: a simulacrum of Aphrodite.

Origin of simulacrum

1
First recorded in 1590–1600; from Latin simulācrum “likeness, image,” equivalent to simulā(re) “to pretend, imitate” + -crum instrumental suffix; see origin at simulate

Words Nearby simulacrum

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use simulacrum in a sentence

  • “Krush” (Karl-as-Rush) was the palest simulacrum of a Rush Limbaugh.

    Rove Bombs as Rush | Tunku Varadarajan | August 9, 2010 | THE DAILY BEAST
  • Verily this sun-burnt son of Arabia Petra was a tangible reality and no desert simulacrum.

  • But any intelligent Irishman will say a simulacrum of Home Rule, with an express notice that it is never to come into operation.

    Six days of the Irish Republic | Louis Redmond-Howard
  • Indeed, I was not so much impressed by the reality as I had been by the simulacrum in my dream of sunrise in the moon.

    A Trip to Venus | John Munro
  • The women exchanged the ghastly simulacrum of a smile, and the meal resumed in silence.

    Just Around the Corner | Fannie Hurst
  • After midnight every pedestrian becomes a simulacrum, wrapped in a black domino of mystery and a starry ephod of romance.

    Just Around the Corner | Fannie Hurst

British Dictionary definitions for simulacrum

simulacrum

/ (ˌsɪmjʊˈleɪkrəm) /


nounplural -cra (-krə) archaic
  1. any image or representation of something

  2. a slight, unreal, or vague semblance of something; superficial likeness

Origin of simulacrum

1
C16: from Latin: likeness, from simulāre to imitate, from similis like

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012