Playacting means pretending to have feelings or qualities you don't really have, usually to deceive others or get what you want. When someone is playacting, they're putting on a false show, like an actor playing a role, except they're doing it in real life to manipulate a situation.

You might see playacting when a student pretends to be confused about homework they actually understand, hoping the teacher will give them the answers. Or when someone acts extremely upset about a minor problem to get extra sympathy and attention. Politicians sometimes get accused of playacting when they seem to adopt beliefs or emotions just because they think voters want to see them.

Playacting is different from imaginative play, where kids pretend to be pirates or astronauts for fun. That kind of pretending is creative and honest. Playacting, by contrast, involves deliberate deception. When someone accuses you of playacting, they're saying you're being phony or insincere, putting on a false front to manipulate others or to avoid real consequences.