100 Quotes About Pretend

Life is full of moments when we need to pretend. Sometimes it’s for our own safety, like pretending to be asleep while hiding from a stranger. Other times it’s because of the expectations of others, like playing the part of the “good boy or girl” when you get scolded. Here are some more examples of people who have learned to pretend very well.

I think sometimes when we find love we pretend it...
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I think sometimes when we find love we pretend it away, or ignore it, or tell ourselves we’re imagining it. Because it is the most painful kind of hope there is. Rae Carson
We are what we pretend to be, so we must...
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We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be. Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
If I behave as though this is a completely normal...
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If I behave as though this is a completely normal situation, then maybe it will be ... Sophie Kinsella
It's easier to fake it. When you fake it for...
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It's easier to fake it. When you fake it for sixteen years, it becomes part of you, something you don't think about. Alex Flinn
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Nobility is a lie. A pretence that high standing comes from anything more than money or martial prowess. Any dolt can play the noble, and as you'll discover in time, daughter, it's mostly dolts who do. Anthony Ryan
For a sane person to sincerely be happy that someone...
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For a sane person to sincerely be happy that someone has succeeded, they have to either be profiting or likely to profit from that person’s success, or be that person. Mokokoma Mokhonoana
Most sane human beings’ chances of being alive in a...
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Most sane human beings’ chances of being alive in a thousand years’ time are a hundred times higher than their chances of being sincerely happy for at least ten consecutive days. Mokokoma Mokhonoana
Most human beings would have never been pained by the...
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Most human beings would have never been pained by the death of a human being if they had never seen a human being or pretending to be pained by that. Mokokoma Mokhonoana
Once you drop a mask, you can never wear it...
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Once you drop a mask, you can never wear it again. Ljupka Cvetanova
Plants are more courageous than almost all human beings: an...
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Plants are more courageous than almost all human beings: an orange tree would rather die than produce lemons, whereas instead of dying the average person would rather be someone they are not. Mokokoma Mokhonoana
Playing a fool is the best paid role.
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Playing a fool is the best paid role. Ljupka Cvetanova
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Kuamini (mbali na imani, ambayo ni nia ya kujua kisichoweza kujulikana) ni kwa ajili ya vitu usivyoweza kuvielezea. Unaamini kwamba siku moja dawa ya UKIMWI au saratani itapatikana mahali fulani, ilhali huwezi kufanya majaribio ya kisayansi kulithibitisha hilo. Unaweza kusubiri hata miaka mia, lakini kama bado dawa haijapatikana, unaweza kusubiri hata miaka mingine mia. Kuamini ni kujifanya kujua (na mara nyingi kujifanya kujua ni uongo) na kuamini hakuhitaji maarifa. Kujua kunahitaji maarifa na ni kuamini unakoweza kukuthibitisha. Ukiniuliza kama simu yangu ipo mfukoni nitakwambia ndiyo ipo, kwa sababu nitaingiza mkono mfukoni na kuitoa na kuiona. Siamini kama ipo mfukoni, najua. . Enock Maregesi
Divinity retains the appearance of insight, when in reality it...
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Divinity retains the appearance of insight, when in reality it celebrates ignorance. Its tenets are so much clay, and when the clay sets, it becomes dogma. Anthony Ryan
Don't. Don't let's pretend when there's no one around.
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Don't. Don't let's pretend when there's no one around. Suzanne Collins
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Power comes at a price, love, " Veliss replied through bared teeth, maintaining the smile she offered to the townsfolk lining the square." What power?"" All power. The power to rule, to kill, or, in your case this fine morning, the power to incite the lust of the old goat you're about to meet."" Lust? I have no desire to incite lust in anyone." Veliss turned to her with a quizzical expression, her smile suddenly genuine. "Then I'm afraid you're in for a lifetime of disappointment. Anthony Ryan
You’re not exactly up for the Humanitarian of the Year...
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You’re not exactly up for the Humanitarian of the Year award, so save your altruism for someone who can't see through you like cellophane. Rebecca McNutt
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I often find that people confuse inner peace with some sense of insensibility whenever something goes wrong. In such cases inner peace is a permit for destruction: The unyielding optimist will pretend that the forest is not burning either because he is too lazy or too afraid to go and put the fire out. Criss Jami
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Running’ is driven by panic. ‘Destination’ is driven by thought. And while it’s terribly painful to admit, incessantly pretending that I do the latter doesn’t replace the fact that I’m constantly doing the former. Craig D. Lounsbrough
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To ‘pretend’ is to say that I’m willing to waste the precious energy that it takes to pretend, and I’m unwilling to cultivate the bravery that it takes to be real. And I am at a complete loss to pretend that either of these aren’t true. Craig D. Lounsbrough
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I don't want to swim on the surface anymore and I never want to pretend again that I know you completely. Let me dive deep inside you, take me in and allow me to look into your secrets, make me feel every breath I take and crave for it more. Carry me to your darker side where you are afraid to allow anyone. Pull me deep inside and make me one of your secrets. Akshay Vasu
God’s eyes readily see beyond our actions, for our actions...
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God’s eyes readily see beyond our actions, for our actions are simply fear and selfishness pretending to be us. Craig D. Lounsbrough
Tonight, can we just pretend that you want me too?
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Tonight, can we just pretend that you want me too? NZuri Za Austin
Tonight, can we just pretend you want me too?
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Tonight, can we just pretend you want me too? NZuri Za Austin
Mandy would much rather have imaginary friends who were real...
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Mandy would much rather have imaginary friends who were real than real friends who were imaginary. Rebecca McNutt
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I pretend to give gifts that people pretend to be gifts so that I can pretend that I gave something that actually cost me something. And what pretending or this sort gives me is the gift of a pretend life. Craig D. Lounsbrough
Even the world’s greatest actor cannot fake an erection.
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Even the world’s greatest actor cannot fake an erection. Mokokoma Mokhonoana
Some people wish they were as happy as or happy...
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Some people wish they were as happy as or happy like some people think they are. Mokokoma Mokhonoana
Some disabled people spend a significant amount of their energy...
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Some disabled people spend a significant amount of their energy on trying to come across as abled or as not that disabled. Mokokoma Mokhonoana
To evade insanity and depression, we unconsciously limit the number...
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To evade insanity and depression, we unconsciously limit the number of people toward whom we are sincerely sympathetic. Mokokoma Mokhonoana
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O woman, father says natural is beautifulso why do you redden your cheeks and blacken your eyes? Why do you remove the hair on your legsand draw them into your brows? Why do you hold your breathlest your stomach showand hold your fartlest they knowthat you’re a human? O woman, father says natural is beautifulso why do you straighten your hairto curl it nextand pretend to orgasm so they think you enjoyed the sex? Why do you dumb yourself downand push your breasts up? Why do you smile when you’re told toand love when you don’t want to? When? When will you stop, woman? Father says natural is beautifulbut that is doubtfulfor what does father knowhe’s only a fellow. Kamand Kojouri
A deep breath is a technique with which we minimize...
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A deep breath is a technique with which we minimize the number of instances where we say what we do not mean … or what we really think. Mokokoma Mokhonoana
To pretend is to do nothing more than imagine life...
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To pretend is to do nothing more than imagine life as something wonderful so that we don’t have to incur the pain that it takes to actually make life wonderful. Craig D. Lounsbrough
The best I can do is to ‘pretend’ that I’m...
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The best I can do is to ‘pretend’ that I’m my own god. But in the pretending I have to pretend that I’m not pretending, and somehow that doesn’t sound very god-like to me. Craig D. Lounsbrough
The steady soul and the ego pretender / walk with...
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The steady soul and the ego pretender / walk with their arms round each other's shoulders / through the mirage. Jay Woodman
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Humility is the greatest shaper of souls and crafter of character, for it wipes away all the grandiose things that we spend so much of our lives pretending to be, so that we can spend all of our lives being the exceptional person that we were actually created to be. Craig D. Lounsbrough
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Culture is a symbolic veil with which we hide our animal nature from ourselves … and other animals. Mokokoma Mokhonoana
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Betrayal is too kind a word to describe a situation in which a father says he loves his daughter but claims he must teach her about the horrors of the world in order to make her a stronger person; a situation in which he watches or participates in rituals that make her feel like she is going to die. She experiences pain that is so intense that she cannot think; her head spins so fast she can't remember who she is or how she got there. All she knows is pain. All she feels is desperation. She tries to cry out for help, but soon learns that no one will listen. No matter how loud she cries, she can't stop or change what is happening. No matter what she does, the pain will not stop. Her father orders her to be tortured and tells her it is for her own good. He tells her that she needs the discipline, or that she has asked for it by her misbehavior. Betrayal is too simple a word to describe the overwhelming pain, the overwhelming loneliness and isolation this child experiences. As if the abuse during the rituals were not enough, this child experiences similar abuse at home on a daily basis. When she tries to talk about her pain, she is told that she must be crazy. "Nothing bad has happened to you;' her family tells her Each day she begins to feel more and more like she doesn't know what is real. She stops trusting her own feelings because no one else acknowledges them or hears her agony. Soon the pain becomes too great. She learns not to feel at all. This strong, lonely, desperate child learns to give up the senses that make all people feel alive. She begins to feel dead. She wishes she were dead. For her there is no way out. She soon learns there is no hope. As she grows older she gets stronger. She learns to do what she is told with the utmost compliance. She forgets everything she has ever wanted. The pain still lurks, but it's easier to pretend it's not there than to acknowledge the horrors she has buried in the deepest parts of her mind. Her relationships are overwhelmed by the power of her emotions. She reaches out for help, but never seems to find what she is looking for The pain gets worse. The loneliness sets in. When the feelings return, she is overcome with panic, pain, and desperation. She is convinced she is going to die. Yet, when she looks around her she sees nothing that should make her feel so bad. Deep inside she knows something is very, very wrong, but she doesn't remember anything. She thinks, "Maybe I am crazy. Margaret Smith
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Her eyes bled from venomous anger.. Her flower had been gruesomely deflowered.. Her life had slowly turned into a blunder.. There was no more thinking further.. She would rather become a Foetus murderer Than end up a "hopeless" mother.. Of course, she found peace in the former Until later years of emotional trauma Oh, the foetus hunt was forever! The only thing you should abort is the thought of aborting your baby. Stop the hate and violence against innocent children. . Chinonye J. Chidolue
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Being called ‘love’ or ‘my love’ by someone doesn’t necessarily mean that you are loved or even liked by them. Mokokoma Mokhonoana
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The best way to not get your heart broken, is pretending you don't have one. Charlie Sheen
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The shield wall reeks of shit, and all a man wants is to be home, to be anywhere but on this field that prepares for battle, but none of us will turn and run or else we will be despised for ever. We pretend we want to be there, and when the wall at last advances, step by step, and the heart is thumping fast as a bird’s wing beating, the world seems unreal. Bernard Cornwell
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There are things that make no sense, that seem unreal, that can’t be grasped or understoodor explained, that maybe don’t even exist… And still, somehow, those wonderful things touch and change our lives. Isn’t it strange? Richelle E. Goodrich
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How crazy it would be if the moon did spin and the earth stood still and the sun went dim! How absolutely ludicrous if snakes could walk and kids could fly and mimes did talk! How silly it would be if the nights were tan and the mornings green and the sun cyan! How totally ridiculous if horses chirped and spiders sang and ladies burped! How shocking it would be if the dragons ruled and the knights were daft but the fish were schooled! How utterly preposterous if rain were dry and snowflakes warm and real men cried! I love to just imagineall the lows as heights, and the salty, sweet, and our lefts as rights. Perhaps it is incredibleand off the hook, but it all makes sensein a storybook!   . Richelle E. Goodrich
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Reality and fantasy are not two separate spheres but one whole. They are like a world's atmosphere―reality behaving as a low front, fantasy a high front. Each remains somewhat distinguishable and yet they swirl and join, affecting and manipulating the other. One cannot perceive where reality ends and fantasy begins, but life would grow stagnant and die without the influence of both. Richelle E. Goodrich
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Imagine fantasy and pretend as neither fantastical nor pretended.....and then believe it. Richelle E. Goodrich
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Some of the most evil human beings in the world are psychiatrists. Not all psychiatrists. Some psychiatrists are selfless, caring people who really want to help. But the sad truth is that in today's society, mental health isn't a science. It's an industry. Ritalin, Zoloft, Prozac, Lexapro, Resperidone, happy pills that are supposed to "normalize" the behavior of our families, our colleagues, our friends - tell me that doesn't sound the least bit creepy! Mental health is subjective. To us, a little girl talking to her pretend friends instead of other children might just be harmless playing around. To a psychiatrist, it's a financial opportunity. Automatically, the kid could be swept up in a sea of labels. "not talking to other kids? Okay, she's asocial! " or "imaginary friends? Bingo, she has schizophrenia! " I'm not saying in any way that schizophrenia and social disorders aren't real. But the alarming number of people, especially children, who seem to have these "illnesses" and need to be medicated or locked up.. it's horrifying. The psychiatrists get their prestigious reputation and their money to burn. The drug companies get fast cash and a chance to claim that they've discovered a wonder-drug, capable of "curing" anyone who might be a burden on society.. that's what it's all about. It's not about really talking to these troubled people and finding out what they need. It's about giving them a pill that fits a pattern, a weapon to normalize people who might make society uncomfortable. The psychiatrists get their weapon. Today's generations get cheated out of their childhoods. The mental health industry takes the world's most vulnerable people and messes with their heads, giving them controlled substances just because they don't fit the normal puzzle. And sadly, it's more or less going to get worse in this rapidly advancing century. Rebecca McNutt
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Amanda, you finally decided to answer the phone, ” her mom exclaimed after picking up at the first ring. “Where’ve you been, what’ve you been up to?”“ Mom, do you remember when I was a kid, I had a friend, he was a Personification of the Sydney Tar Ponds, sort of my imaginary friend?” Mandy asked.“ No, what in the name of god are you on about?” her mom sighed in exasperation.“ Remember? Only I could see him, but he was real and he was my best friend when I was eighteen?” Mandy insisted.“ No, I don't remember Alecto Sydney Steele at all, ” said her mom all too quickly. Rebecca McNutt
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This was a new skill she'd acquired, the ability to look, to the outside world, utterly serene and even cheerful, while, in her skull, all was chaos. Dave Eggers
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16. Christians should never consult astrologers, psychics, or those who practice witchcraft (see Isaiah 47:13-14). They are usually phonies who only pretend to have extrasensory powers. But in some cases, they are working in cooperation with Satan. Rather than tamper with this evil world, the one true God wants us to bring our needs, problems, and decisions to Him. He has promised to lead us into all truth (see John 8:32). James C. Dobson
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Be a man! Put on a mask. Ljupka Cvetanova
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He has his head in the clouds. He must live in a skyscraper. Ljupka Cvetanova
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Wind and breeze are separated today Crimson twilight denies to fade away Grass blades turn brown to match the soil We pretend to smile at every turmoil Munia Khan
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Over the years, I learned to smile or laugh when I was supposed to. I kept my true self hidden; I did not need to unleash my pain on the world around me. Instead, I taught myself to ignore it. I did not realize that the pain was eating away at my soul. J.D. Stroube
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Courage?" I gave a very soft laugh. "I find courage is just another of life's illusions. In the end, we all do what we must. Anthony Ryan
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It's always comforting to tell yourself things are going to be alright, because even if a part of you senses that you're lying, it's comforting to shut it out- shut out reality and pretend- because pretending is nice. Emma Abdullah
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Reality is a background so painted over by our own perceptions that every eye sees the world differently. Richelle E. Goodrich
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And that was the greatest heartbreak of all- no matter how spectacular we want our children to be, no matter how perfect we pretend they are, they are bound to disappoint. As it turns out, kids are more like us than we think: damaged, through and through. Jodi Picoult
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To give herself a measure of credible autonomy, she had decided to invent a husband. Then, in a subsequent flash of inspiration, she had just as quickly killed him off. Tracy Anne Warren
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Everybody is equally weak on the inside, just that some present their ruins as new castles and become kings — Simona Panova
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You arranged everything according to your own taste, and so I got the same tastes as you - or else I pretended to. I am really not quite sure which - I think sometimes the one and sometimes the other. Henrik Ibsen
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Never trust someone that claims they care nothing of what society thinks of them. Instead of conquering obstacles, they simply pretend they don't exist. Tiffany Madison
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In this world we are all pretenders, and Society is our game Lucas Sterk
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Don't you agree that if I act like there is nothing going on, other people will behave that way too? Nichole Chase
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I always am in a role, lovely — for you, for them — even for myself. Yeah... Even when I’m alone, I am still in a role — and I myself am the most exacting audience I have ever had. Simona Panova
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We live in a world full of people who are satisfied with pretending to be someone they are not. Tommy Tran
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Emotions don’t interfere in my acting, nor in my life. Simona Panova
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Everyone changes so slowly, they don't even know that they have. And everyone likes to pretend that things are just the same yet they look at you like you could bring something back that's supposed to already be here. But home is a time. Not just a place. Iain Thomas
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Was she acting entirely consciously? No: women are always sincere, even in the midst of their most shocking duplicities, because it is always some natural emotion which dominates them. Perhaps, having given this young man such a hold on her, by having openly demonstrated her affection for him, Delphine was merely responding to a sense of personal dignity, which led her either to revoke any concessions she might have made or, at least, to enjoy suspending them. Even at the very moment when passion seizes her, it is perfectly natural for a Parisian woman to delay her final fall, as a way of testing the heart of the man into whose hands she is about to deliver herself and her future! . Unknown
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Everyone is watching you. If you don’t believe it, just pretend to fail and you’ll see many mockers. For this reason, work hard as if you are doing everyone’s business! Israelmore Ayivor
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You stand a better chance of bringing pretend to life through the power of belief than you stand any chance of erasing what's real by refusing to believe. Richelle E. Goodrich
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Who did I think we were.who did I think I could make you.this is the oldest mistake, to confuse wantingwith magic. silence is the undoingof every spell, and we are expertsin the unsaid. even now, I forgetto put us in past tense. as ifthe air in this city were the same.as if love is anything like its speaking. Unknown
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Chameleonesque, hobbitish, unicorned, stompled, selfishism, and unwakeable may not be real words, but you do know what they mean. Richelle E. Goodrich
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And then I did the best thing I knew to do with the strange concoction of sadness and hope brewing inside me. I prayed. I prayed for the people whose initials were on those slivers. Not just for those people, but for the cave people before them and the robot people after them. For real orphans. For all the people who have lost shoes in the road. For kids whose parents play war. For Toodie Bleu Skies and Toodi Bleu Nordenhauer, for M. B. McClean and Douglas Nordenhauer. And all the people who need to find the magic in Make Believe. That, I figured, just about covered the whole world. Amber McRee Turner
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Let's pretend for just one moment that could actually happen. You close your eyes and I'll close mine and let's dream the same dream across the Atlantic, lighting up the darkness between us. Can you see it, Stu? Can you see us up there, shining in all the black? Annabel Pitcher
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I pretend he doesn’t exist, and he does the same with me. Unknown
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I guess it's better to have a chalk smile, than an ink smile. Where chalk changes with the direction of wind, ink stays as a deep stain. Like rain, sun and hail against a fake plant. Anthony Liccione
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Im gonna be a pretender the rest of my life. Pretending i dont wish every girl i kiss isnt you. Pretending i dont wish every girl i sleep with isnt you. Im gonna have to pretend i dont wish my next relationship wont be with you. Pretend that i dont wish the girl i get engaged to isnt you. Pretend i dont wish the girl i marry isnt you. Pretend i dont wish the mother of my kids to be you. Pretend its not you i want to spend the rest of my life with. Everything will be a lie the rest of my life. Thats so hard to accept. . Michael A. Perez
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They spent the first three years of school getting you to pretend stuff and then the rest of it marking you down if you did the same thing. Margaret Atwood
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So many people spend years (and money) studying to be doctors, lawyers, actors, dancers, business executives and scientists - when you're an author, you can be any of these things, and you don't need a degree or certificate; all you need is an imagination, a dream and an open mind. Rebecca McNutt
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There was something comforting about believing in things that didn’t exist. A. Lynn
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Paranoia. The more you think of an imaginary problem, the more you feel as though it’s real — Simona Panova
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Fear your friends. Beware of your close friends. Be alert to whom you cast your trust. Because not all of them will help you to build your future. Some are just pretending to be. Some are just there because they need your hand. Some are secretly pulling you down. Some are just there because simply they need you. They will leave you anytime. Be careful. Nathaniel E. Quimada
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The best way to see majesty is to strip away everything that pretends to be majestic so that which is fake wholly collapses in the face of that which is majestic. And God in a manger is likely the most remarkable example we have of such a monumental truth. Craig D. Lounsbrough
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I keep everything hidden because there's nothing about my true self that anyone likes. I'm not difficult, Sebastian. I'm the easiest person around. I don't belong, and I spend all my time pretending I do. Sometimes I get weary of it, and that makes me angry. It's not fair to the people around me when I lose my temper. I say awful things when I'm angry. But it's not fair to me, either, that I was made this way. Courtney Milan
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You have to pretend like you know what you’re doing before you know what you’re doing. Cody McLain
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Tonight, can we just pretend you want me to? NZuri Za Austin
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And I wasn’t playing a role — I was trying to be myself. But the harder I was striving, the more I was realizing that I had probably lost that ‘myself’ somewhere between two perfectly performed roles... Simona Panova
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His character would be blamed, loathed, discussed, and adored — but somewhere there, behind his mask of a hero, Cardew would remain faceless. Anonymous. Simona Panova
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This girl had been looking on with her hair hanging over her face, only partly hiding a cruel-looking scar; her eyes shone with hatred. Not necessarily hatred of your father or of puppets or the other children, but a hatred of make-believe, which did not heal, but was only useful to the people who didn't need it. Helen Oyeyemi
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Some human beings in their craftiness thought they can pretend to be good when they are actually bad. Bamigboye Olurotimi
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I lie more convincingly than I tell the truth. Simona Panova
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I buried my head under the darkness of the pillow and pretended it was night. I couldn't see the point of getting up. I had nothing to look forward to. Sylvia Plath
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On the way home Mary Lou said, "Some things are so sad you can't say them." But I pretended not to hear. Joyce Carol Oates
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When you are doubt with someone on how they feel don't pretend that you know what they were thinking, never assume yourself as you know how they feel when you really not at their shoes at all. Jinnul Jr.
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You hide it well, but I can see it, Lord Verniers. You hate us. We have beaten you to obedience but it's still there, like dry tinder waiting for a spark. Anthony Ryan
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It's pointless to hate anything. Just trick your conscience by pretending you like something and soon enough you will. Gabriella Jording
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Heroes are hero no matter if everybody is watching them or nobody watching them. Amit Kalantri
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You’re beautiful, too. I mean, you’re hot, ” I blurted out. “But I always knew you would be.” My eyes widened as I realized what just streamed out of my mouth, and his grin turned into a smile. “Oh my God, I did not just say..any of that out loud.”“ You did.”“ Ugh.” Tipping his head back, he laughed deeply. And he laughed like he had in those rare instances when something truly amused him. He did so with a freedom I’d envied. I started to place my hands over my flaming face, but he caught my wrists, holding them between us. His eyes were lighter, dancing. “I can pretend you didn’t say that if that makes you feel better, ” he suggested. Oh yes, that would be fabulous. I nodded.“ I won’t forget it, though. Jennifer L. Armentrout
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Knowing to do the right thing, but playing stupid to oblige to it, is still lying. Anthony Liccione
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On top of the abuse and neglect, denial heaps more hurt upon the child by requiring the child to alienate herself from reality and her own experience. In troubled families, abuse and neglect are permitted; it's the talking about them that is forbidden. Marcia Sirota