masquerade /ˌmæskəˈɹeɪd/noun 7verb 4forms 3 noun[before a noun]7 •An assembly or party of people wearing (usually elaborate or fanciful) masks and costumes, and amusing themselves with dancing, conversation, or other diversions.I was invited to the masquerade at their home. •(slang) A cosplay event at which costumed attendees perform skits. •(figurative) An act of living under false pretenses; a concealment of something by a false or unreal show; a disguise, a pretence; also, a pretentious display. •The act of wearing a mask or dressing up in a costume for, or as if for, a masquerade ball. •(figurative) An assembly of varied, often fanciful, things. •(no longer used) A dramatic performance by actors in masks; a mask or masque. •(no longer used, rare) A Spanish entertainment or military exercise in which squadrons of horses charge at each other, the riders fighting with bucklers and canes. verb[before a noun]4 •To take part in a masquerade; to assemble in masks and costumes; (loosely) to wear a disguise.I’m going to masquerade as an old-fashioned pilot. What are you going to dress up as? •(figurative) To pass oneself off as a different person or a person with qualities that one does not possess; also, to make a pretentious show of being what one is not.He masqueraded as my friend until the truth finally came out. •(figurative) To appear as something else.A Foundation outpost masquerading as an abandoned home has been established within the vicinity of SCP-2003. — 2025 •(rare) To conceal (someone) with, or as if with, a mask; to disguise. formsmasqueraded · masquerading · masquerades