accomplice
Americannoun
noun
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
100 SAT Words Beginning with "A"
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Tuck Everlasting
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The Wednesday Wars
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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.
Accomplice liability charges are rare but not unprecedented in Maine.
From Seattle Times • Aug. 18, 2023
Some went to Accomplice Beer Company, a microbrewery in the historic Union Pacific Depot where workers recently tested positive for COVID-19.
From Washington Times • Jun. 23, 2020
Accomplice Lester Van Waters pleaded guilty last year in a deal that called for him to testify against Spell if the case went to trial.
From Washington Times • Oct. 22, 2014
The Tron plays host to Mwana, a new play by performance poet Tawona Sithole, and also to the latest from Random Accomplice, Double Nugget, a double-bill of new writing.
From The Guardian • Feb. 10, 2012
Accomplice and abettor have nearly the same meaning, but the former is the popular, the latter more distinctively the legal term.
From English Synonyms and Antonyms With Notes on the Correct Use of Prepositions by Fernald, James Champlin
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.
