kayfabe
noun

- in wrestling, the practice of trying to make people believe that wrestlers are particular characters, when in fact they are only pretending to be those characters

- to behave as if something is real, sincere, or genuine when it is not

Cambridge Dictionary, Merriam-Webster

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WORD ORIGIN

The earliest known written evidence of "kayfabe" is from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Yearbook for 1988, although the term is believed to be much older. Its etymology is somewhat mysterious, as the term originated in the secretive world of professional wrestling, where wrestlers and promoters deliberately protect the industry's scripted nature.

One theory suggests kayfabe derives from the Latin cavēre, meaning "to keep care" or "be vigilant”.

Another suggests that it originated from “Carny” slang, a form of coded language used by travelling carnival workers and wrestlers.

The term may also be related to "keep cavey", a phrase used by East London Jews between World Wars I and II, meaning to keep something secret.

Regardless of its origins, kayfabe has evolved beyond wrestling and is now used in politics, entertainment, and even social media to describe staged authenticity or carefully controlled public personas.

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FAMOUS WRESTLERS & THEIR SLOGANS

Just as a "thought experiment", you might want to equate these slogans with some current politicans!

- The “Animal” Batista ("The Animal Has Been Unleashed!”)

- The Beast Incarnate, Brock Lesnar ("Here Comes the Pain!”)

- Hulk "The Immortal" Hogan ("Train, say your prayers, and eat your vitamins!”)


- John "You Can't See Me" Cena ("You can't see me!”)


- The American Nightmare, Cody Rhodes ("Finish the story.”)


- The Deadman, The Undertaker ("I will claim your soul!”)


- The Big Red Machine Kane ("Welcome to Hell!”)


- The Apex Predator, Randy Orton ("You're either prey, or you're the Apex Predator.”)


- Seth "Freakin'" Rollins ("Burn it down!”)


- Shawn "The Heartbreak Kid" Michaels ("I am The Showstopper, The Main Event, The Icon!”)

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SYNONYMS

acting the part, be fake, bending the truth, calculated deception, carnival act, charade, choreographed combat, cloaked reality, constructed narrative, controlled illusion, crafted spectacle, deliberate façade, dressed-up reality, fabrication, false front (narrative), falsified truth, feigned authenticity, fiction masquerading as fact, grand illusion, illusion of reality, KAYFABE, keep cavey, let's pretend, maintaining character (the illusion), manufactured drama (truth), masquerade, mock sincerity, narrative engineering, off-stage reality, orchestrated spectacle, playing to the crowd (the game), political theater, pretend world, pretending for the crowd, pretense, protecting the business (the secrets), rigged/scripted reality (spectacle), role-playing, staged authenticity (reality), suspension of disbelief, theatrical illusion, theatrics, trumped-up show

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SMUGGLE OWAD into an English conversation, say something like:

“In politics, KAYFABE is just wrestling without the ring.”

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THANKS to Florian for suggesting today's word.

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