adjective

bogus

BOH-guhs/ˈbəʊɡəs/

False or not genuine.

The bogus gold bar reveals ordinary brick beneath its foil.

A bogus gold ingot revealed as an ordinary brick wrapped in thin gold-colored foil, with the covering peeled back to expose rough red clay.

Etymology

Bogus first described counterfeit money, apparently taking its name from a counterfeiter’s apparatus. That association with fraudulent imitation broadened to anything sham or not genuine; its deeper origin remains uncertain.

In context

60 Minutes26:43

hackers had busted into its computer system and stolen another 104,000 taxpayer identities which so far have been used to collect nearly $50 million in bogus refunds

Con Artists | 60 Minutes Full Episodes

More examples

He presented a bogus certificate.
The teenagers thought the new restriction was bogus.
She recognized the signature as bogus.

Forms

bogus

Similar words

fake: Fake is the ordinary broad term.
counterfeit: Counterfeit suggests deliberate imitation intended to deceive.