forgery / fake
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fake / forgery
An object that has been made as a copy of an original in order to deceive. It can involve art, documents, money, or branded products.
Das Gemälde im Museum entpuppte sich als eine geschickte Fälschung.
The painting in the museum turned out to be a skillful forgery.
'Die Fälschung' (the forgery / fake) is the noun from the verb 'fälschen' (to forge / to fake). The ending '-ung' forms feminine nouns that often describe an action or its result.
Er wurde verhaftet, weil er Pässe gefälscht hat.
He was arrested because he forged passports.
The sentence tells you whether the object (m01) or the act (m02) is meant. If someone speaks of 'einer Fälschung' (a forgery / fake) or describes it, the object is meant. If it is about 'die Fälschung von etwas' (the forgery of something), the action is meant.
Dieses Zertifikat ist eine Fälschung.
This certificate is a forgery.
When referring to the forged object, you often hear combinations like 'eine plumpe Fälschung' (a crude forgery), 'eine perfekte Fälschung' (a perfect forgery), or 'auf eine Fälschung hereinfallen' (to fall for a fake).
Der Experte erkannte sofort, dass es sich um eine plumpe Fälschung handelte.
The expert recognized immediately that it was a crude forgery.
To describe the act of forging, the structure 'die Fälschung von + [noun in the dative plural/genitive]' is often used. Typical examples are 'die Fälschung von Dokumenten' (the forgery of documents) or 'die Fälschung von Kunstwerken' (the forgery of works of art).
Ihm wird die Fälschung von Unterschriften vorgeworfen.
He is accused of forging signatures.
fraud / cheating
'der Betrug' and 'die Fälschung' both have to do with deception, but they do not mean the same thing. 'der Betrug' is deliberate deception through which someone gains an advantage or harms someone else. 'die Fälschung' is either a fake object, for example a false document or a copied branded product, or the act of making one. The words can be confused because a forgery is often part of fraud. Still, 'Fälschung' is more concrete: it is about something fake that is meant to seem real. 'Betrug' describes the whole act of deception.
Im Geschäft merkte er sofort, dass die Uhr eine Fälschung war.
In the store, he immediately noticed that the watch was a fake.
Die Polizei prüft, ob der Verkauf im Internet Betrug war.
The police are checking whether the online sale was fraud.