what does "phony mean? when do you say that a person is phony?

Answer 1

like they're fake

if i pretended to b the queen, i'd b a phony....LOL

Phony is a slang term for "fake". It is one of the key words used by protagonist Holden Caulfield in J. D. Salinger's novel, Catcher in the Rye.

Answer 2

it means fake, or not real. you would call a person a phony if they were not really the type of person they are pretending to be. for example, if i say that i have lots of money to impress a girl, but it is a lie, then i am a phony. Many politicians can be called phonies because they pretend to be something that they are not. the word phony can also refer to objects other than people in the same way. fake.

Answer 3

phony
Main Entry: 1pho·ny
Variant(s): also pho·ney /'fO-nE/
Function: adjective
Inflected Form(s): pho·ni·er; -est
Etymology: perhaps alteration of fawney gilded brass ring used in the fawney rig, a confidence game, from Irish fáinne ring, from Old Irish ánne -- more at ANUS
: not genuine or real: as a (1) : intended to deceive or mislead (2) : intended to defraud : COUNTERFEIT b : arousing suspicion : probably dishonest c : having no basis in fact : FICTITIOUS d : FALSE, SHAM e : making a false show: as (1) : HYPOCRITICAL (2) : SPECIOUS
- pho·ni·ly /'fO-ni-lE/ adverb
- pho·ni·ness /'fO-nE-n&s/ noun

http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/phony

Phony

Holden Caulfield's favorite insult, an old way of saying poser.

"What I have to do, I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff- I mean if they're running and they don't look where they're going I have to come out from somewhere and catch them. That's all I'd do all day. I'd just be the catcher in the rye and all. I know it's crazy, but that's the only thing I'd really like to be. I know it's crazy."

-Holden Caulfield.

Here he expresses how he'd like to stop people from beocming phony as they grow up.

Answer 4

When at first TELEPHONES became a reality
that we could not escape anymore,
people with a mind set for resistance to change
in the Nature of Communications
and the Way that it had Prevailed for Several Thousands of Years
coined a Word to describe people
who choose to go along with
such a change in lifestyle...
Phony as in Stupidly drawn to the Fashionable.
please understand that reactions
to technological advances were extremely strong
at the turn of the 20th century,
equally as strong as the general fascination for it all.
between 1850 or so, and 1910-15
life on earth changed dramatically
and upset many that were not feeling modern or commercial.

as for the meaning of it, today...

don't listen to people who call other people names
they are morons full of fear
listen to your Heart
Believe.

Answer 5

Usually it means that they are pretending to be someone they aren't, or acting in a way that is not true to their character. For example, the classic bitchy, popular cheerleader suddenly being nice to the plain-looking, quiet nerd. Unless the cheerleader had a near-death experience to change her attitude, she is being totally phony when she is nice to the nerd.

Answer 6

It means you look like a small horse. Kidding, it's mean fake, false, hyprocrite.

Answer 7

phony means kinda "fake or counterfeit".

Answer 8

False .

Answer 9

Means they are fake.

Answer 10

This person is pretending to be someone they are not.