'假装' (jiǎ zhuāng) is a verb meaning 'to pretend' — to act as if something is true when it is not, often to deceive, avoid embarrassment, or manage social situations. The first character 假 (jiǎ) means 'false' or 'fake', while 装 (zhuāng) means 'to dress up', 'to put on', or 'to act'. Together, they literally convey the idea of 'putting on a false appearance'. It’s commonly used in everyday speech to describe feigning emotions (e.g., happiness, ignorance, illness), intentions (e.g., not caring), or states (e.g., being asleep or unaware).

This word carries a neutral-to-slightly-negative connotation depending on context: pretending to be sick to skip work may sound irresponsible, but pretending not to notice a friend’s mistake can show kindness. It's rarely used for formal or official pretense (e.g., diplomatic deception); for those contexts, words like '伪装' (wěi zhuāng) are more appropriate. '假装' always takes an object or complement indicating what is being pretended — e.g., '假装不知道' (pretend not to know) or '假装高兴' (pretend to be happy).