accomplice
Americannoun
-
accomplices
plural
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of accomplice
First recorded in 1475–85; a(c) of uncertain origin + late Middle English complice, from Middle French, from Medieval Latin complici- (stem of complex ) “partner”; see complex
Explanation
An accomplice is a cooperator or participator, commonly in criminal acts. So you’re an accomplice to the gas station robbery if you distracted the store manager while your partner in crime raided the registers for cash. Coming from the Old French word complice, which means “a confederate,” an accomplice is an ally or partaker, sometimes in wrongdoing. Novelist Saul Bellow famously said that "when we ask for advice, we are usually looking for an accomplice.” What he means, in more direct terms, is that we run potential plans by others because we're looking for approval or someone to go along with us, not because we truly want their opinion.
Vocabulary lists containing accomplice
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Tuck Everlasting
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Hanning and his suspected accomplice were remanded in investigative custody by the Federal Court of Justice on Wednesday.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026
Daejon Labrayae Love, 35, and his accomplice Taylor Jamie Chan, 18, remain in federal custody after their arrest Aug. 24 in Boise, Idaho, on wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud charges.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 23, 2026
His high-profile targets went on to include the future French president Nicolas Sarkozy in 1997 -- although in that case he had an accomplice lob the actual pie for fear of being recognised.
From Barron's ● Aug. 24, 2026
Could he have had an accomplice secretly conveying perfect computer-generated moves?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 3, 2026
Even though Turner tried to close the door slowly and quietly, it shrieked out his presence like a guilty accomplice, and they all turned to look at him.
From "Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy" by Gary D. Schmidt
Investigators continue to probe whether al-Hammami had accomplices or other support.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026
"From today, you will have to watch over your villages," Gombagui told around 100 local officials gathered in the village of Tibeita on a recent morning, urging them to "denounce" the prospectors and their accomplices.
From Barron's ● Sep. 30, 2026
Her father and three accomplices were already serving life in prison.
From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026
Using stolen identities, AI tools and U.S. accomplices, its operatives have cheated their way into remote jobs at American companies—funneling millions of dollars back to Kim Jong Un’s regime.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
Based on eyewitness accounts, police believe the boy may be traveling with two teenage accomplices.
From "The Lightning Thief" by Rick Riordan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
