By the social standard of the day, they were considered religious, godly, and even holy. They were leaders and teachers who held authority over the religious administration of the community.
But Jesus called them fake.
I wonder if they knew that they were not real before Jesus pointed out their lack of authenticity.
It is interesting to note that Jesus was rather gentle and hospitable to real sinners but quite blunt and harsh to fake saints.
A hypocrite is the one pretends to be morally blameless with the intention of gaining respect from others. Obviously, Jesus hated this.