masquerade vs pretending

masquerade and pretending both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
masquerade	Yes	No	Yes	No
pretending	Yes	No	No	No

As nouns, pretending is a hypernym of masquerade; that is, pretending is a word with a broader meaning than masquerade:

Other hypernyms of masquerade include feigning, pretence, pretense, simulation.

masquerade (noun)	pretending (noun)
making a false outward show	the act of giving a false appearance
a costume worn as a disguise at a masquerade party
a party of guests wearing costumes and masks

masquerade (verb)	pretending (verb)
pretend to be someone or something that you are not
take part in a masquerade