Ersatz
Definition, Meaning & Examples
Pronunciation /ˈɛəzæts/ · Part of speech adjective
Quick meaning: Ersatz is an adjective meaning inauthentic or inadequate substitute or imitation.
Meaning
inauthentic or inadequate substitute or imitation.
More Meanings
- Something made in imitation; an effigy or substitute.
Example Sentences
Back then, we could only get ersatz coffee.
The crowd wandered out to a huge party on the ersatz city blocks of the Paramount lot.
Ersatzgas, Ersatzpfennige. Ersatz has become a brave word in Germany. As a substantive it means War Reparations. As part of compounded words it means substitute.
The NATO visitors watched an ersatz eighteenth-century dance (complete with powdered wigs and simulated copulation) that might have been considered obscene had it not been so amusing.
Word Forms
- ersatzes
Synonyms for ersatz
Depending on context, synonyms include fake, faux, imitation, inauthentic, knockoff, rip-off.
Related Words
Related dictionary entries include artificial, imitation, substitute, unreal, mock, counterfeit.
Related Dictionary Tools
Sources & Attribution
FreeDictionaryAPI.com / Wiktionary · Original source · CC BY-SA 4.0
Dictionary data is provided by FreeDictionaryAPI.com and sourced from Wiktionary under its stated license.