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stratagem - 4 dictionary results

strat⋅a⋅gem

  [strat-uh-juhm]
Use stratagem in a Sentence
–noun
1. a plan, scheme, or trick for surprising or deceiving an enemy.
2. any artifice, ruse, or trick devised or used to attain a goal or to gain an advantage over an adversary or competitor: business stratagems.
Origin:
1480–90; (< MF stratageme) < It stratagemma war ruse < L stratēgēma < Gk stratgēma instance of generalship, deriv. of stratēgeîn to be in command, deriv. of stratēgós military commander (see strategy )

Related forms:
strat⋅a⋅gem⋅i⋅cal  [strat-uh-jem-i-kuhl] , adjective
strat⋅a⋅gem⋅i⋅cal⋅ly, adverb

Synonyms:
1, 2. See trick. 2. deception, intrigue, device, maneuver, contrivance.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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strat·a·gem   (strāt'ə-jəm)   
n.  
  1. A military maneuver designed to deceive or surprise an enemy.
  2. A clever, often underhanded scheme for achieving an objective. See Synonyms at wile.

[Middle English, from Old French stratageme, from Old Italian stratagemma, from Latin stratēgēma, from Greek, from stratēgein, to be a general, from stratēgos, general : stratos, army; see ster-2 in Indo-European roots + agein, to lead; see ag- in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Stratagem

Strat"a*gem\, n. [F. stratag[`e]me (cf. Sp. estratagema, It. stratagemma), L. strategema, Gr. ?, fr. ? to be leader of an army, fr. ? a general; ? an army (probably as being spread out; cf. Stratum) + ? to lead. See Agent.] An artifice or trick in war for deceiving the enemy; hence, in general, artifice; deceptive device; secret plot; evil machination.

Fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils. --Shak.

Those oft are stratagems which error seem, Nor is it Homer nods, but we that dream. --Pope.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : stratagem
Spanish: estratagema,
German: die (Kriegs)List,
Japanese: 計略
More Translations »

stratagem 
"artifice, trick," 1489, from M.Fr. stratagème "trick, especially to outwit an enemy," from It. stratagemma, from L. strategema "artifice, stratagem," from Gk. strategema "the act of a general, military stratagem," from strategein "to be a general, command," from strategos "general" (see strategy).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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