imposture

Founding-era definition · Webster's 1828 American Dictionary

IMPOS'TURE, noun [Latin impostura. See Impose.] Deception practiced under a false or assumed character; fraud or imposition practiced by a false pretender. --Form new legends, And fill the world with follies and impostures.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI

More founding-era words: liberty · virtue · republic · justice · providence · commerce · militia · arms · prudence · establishment · religion · usurpation · tyranny · citizen · unalienable · sovereign