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-phony
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suff.
Sound: telephony.
[Greek -phōniā, from phōnē, sound, voice; see bhā-2 in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2020 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
 
pho·ny also pho·ney (fōnē)
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adj. pho·ni·er, pho·ni·est
1. Not genuine or real; sham or counterfeit: a phony credit card; a phony beard.
2. Spurious, deceptive, or false: a phony excuse.
3. Fraudulent, deceitful, or dishonest: a phony expert in investing.
n. pl. pho·nies also pho·neys
1. A fraudulent or dishonest person.
2. Something that is not genuine; a fake.
[Alteration of fawney, gilt brass ring used by swindlers, from Irish Gaelic fáinne, ring, from Old Irish.]
phoni·ly adv.
phoni·ness n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2020 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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