Impostors

/ɪmˈpɑːstərz/ noun

Definition

People who pretend to be someone they are not in order to deceive others.

Etymology

From French 'imposteur', from Latin 'impostor' (from 'imponere' meaning to place upon, deceive). The 'im-' prefix means in or upon, and '-positor' means placer, so literally 'one who imposes upon' or deceives.

Kelly Says

Interestingly, 'impostor syndrome'—where successful people feel like frauds—became a major psychological concept in the 1970s, suggesting that as societies became more mobile, people lost the traditional markers of belonging and everyone worried about being exposed as a fake.

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