mock

Etymology

From Middle English mokken, from Old French mocquer, moquier (“to deride, jeer”), from Middle Dutch mocken (“to mumble”) or Middle Low German mucken (“to grumble, talk with the mouth half-opened”), both from Proto-West Germanic *mokkijan, *mukkijan (“to low, bellow; mumble”), from Proto-Germanic *mukkijaną, *mūhaną (“to low, bellow, shout”), from Proto-Indo-European *mūg-, *mūk- (“to low, mumble”). Cognate with Dutch mokken (“to sulk; pout; mope; grumble”), Old High German firmucken (“to be stupid”), Modern German mucksen (“to utter a word; mumble; grumble”), West Frisian mokke (“to mope; sulk; grumble”), Swedish mucka (“to murmur”), dialectal Dutch mokkel (“kiss”).

noun

1. An imitation, usually of lesser quality.
   Is tortured thirst itself too sweet a cup? Gall, and more bitter mocks, shall make it up. a. 1649, Richard Crashaw, The Hymn
2. Mockery; the act of mocking.
3. A practice exam set by an educating institution to prepare students for an important exam.
   He got a B in his History mock, but improved to an A in the exam.
4. (software engineering) A mockup or prototype; particularly, ellipsis of mock object., as used in unit testing.
   You can, if you must, create a mock that derives from a concrete class. The problem is that the resulting class represents a mix of production and mocked behavior, a beast referred to as a partial mock. 2013, Jeff Langr, Modern C++ Programming with Test-Driven Development
   Mocks replace the objects with which your methods under test collaborate, thus offering a layer of isolation. 2020, Cătălin Tudose, JUnit in Action, 3rd edition, Simon and Schuster, page 139

verb

1. To mimic, to simulate.
2. (rare) To create an artistic representation of.
3. To make fun of, especially by mimicking; to taunt.
   Let not ambition mock their useful toil.
4. To tantalise, and disappoint the hopes of.
   ‘Mock’ certainly never signifies to loath. Its common signification is, to disappoint. 1765, Benjamin Heath, A revisal of Shakespear's text, page 563 (a commentary on the "mocke the meate" line from Othello)
   The French revolution indeed is a prodigy which has mocked the expectations both of its friends and its foes. It has cruelly disappointed the fondest hopes of the first, nor has it observed that course which the last thought that it would have pursued. 1812, The Critical Review or, Annals of Literature, page 190
5. (software engineering, transitive) To create a mockup or prototype of.
   They can also mock other integration points such as backend, database, or any other external resource. 2016, Murat Yener, Onur Dundar, Expert Android Studio, page 233

adj

1. Imitation, not genuine; fake.
   mock leather
   mock trial
   mock turtle-soup
   For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States: 1776, United States Declaration of Independence