collusion

[ kuh-loo-zhuhn ]
See synonyms for collusion on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a secret agreement, especially for fraudulent or treacherous purposes; conspiracy: Some of his employees were acting in collusion to rob him.

  2. Law. a secret understanding between two or more persons to gain something illegally, to defraud someone's rights, or to appear as adversaries though in agreement: collusion of husband and wife to obtain a divorce.

Origin of collusion

1
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English (from Middle French ) from Latin collūsiōn- (stem of collūsiō ), equivalent to collūs(us) (past participle of collūdere to collude) + -iōn- -ion

Other words for collusion

Other words from collusion

  • non·col·lu·sion, noun
  • pre·col·lu·sion, noun

Words that may be confused with collusion

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use collusion in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for collusion

collusion

/ (kəˈluːʒən) /


noun
  1. secret agreement for a fraudulent purpose; connivance; conspiracy

  2. a secret agreement between opponents at law in order to obtain a judicial decision for some wrongful or improper purpose

Origin of collusion

1
C14: from Latin collūsiō, from collūdere to collude

Derived forms of collusion

  • collusive, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012