connive
to cooperate secretly; conspire (often followed by with): They connived to take over the business.
to avoid noticing something that one is expected to oppose or condemn; give aid to wrongdoing by forbearing to act or speak (usually followed by at): The policeman connived at traffic violations.
to be indulgent toward something others oppose or criticize (usually followed by at): to connive at childlike exaggerations.
Origin of connive
1Other words for connive
Other words from connive
- con·niv·er, noun
- con·niv·ing·ly, adverb
- un·con·nived, adjective
- un·con·niv·ing, adjective
Words that may be confused with connive
- connive , conspire
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use connive in a sentence
Now, you have to show Bill or lose your reputation as a 'conniver.'
The Woodcraft Girls at Camp | Lillian Elizabeth RoyNo man dared contradict or oppose him, lest he should be denounced as a conniver of the plot, and arrested as a traitor.
Royalty Restored | J. Fitzgerald MolloyHe is a drinker of strong wines, a conniver at evil for bribes: for a good sum he would teach "a felon"
That man was the most talented conniver at stratagems I ever saw.
The Gentle Grafter | O. Henry
British Dictionary definitions for connive
/ (kəˈnaɪv) /
to plot together, esp secretly; conspire
(foll by at) law to give assent or encouragement (to the commission of a wrong)
Origin of connive
1Derived forms of connive
- conniver, noun
- connivingly, adverb
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
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