connive

[ kuh-nahyv ]

See synonyms for: connive conniving conniver on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object),con·nived, con·niv·ing.

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

1595–1605; (<French conniver) <Latin co(n)nīvēre to close the eyes in sleep, turn a blind eye, equivalent to con-con- + -nīvēre, akin to nictāre to blink (cf. nictitate)

Other words for connive

1	plan, plot, collude

See synonyms for connive on Thesaurus.com

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

Words Nearby connive

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use connive in a sentence

I’ll be back, you can be sure,At latest 2024, and I will thriveIf I connive!
Style Invitational Week 1463: Fork over some (new) spoonerisms | Pat Myers | November 18, 2021 | Washington Post
When they couldn't connive and consume they turned into black and white and had nothing left to live for.
The Bag Lady Photos | Alexandra Penney | February 13, 2010 | THE DAILY BEAST
They would never connive at this second sowing of the dragon's teeth of Cadmus.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV. | Various
Werther, however, did not abandon his enterprise, and even besought the judge to connive at the flight of the prisoner.
The Sorrows of Young Werther | J.W. von Goethe
What was there astonishing in that King James, not wishing to shed your blood on the scaffold, should connive at your escape?
A Romance of the West Indies | Eugne Sue

No money-making graft is too petty or too immoral for the MacMorroghs to connive at.
Empire Builders | Francis Lynde
When I suggested that he connive with the governor toward removing our sheriff, he declared that the governor was a coward.
The Little Brown Jug at Kildare | Meredith Nicholson

British Dictionary definitions for connive

connive

/ (kəˈnaɪv) /

verb(intr)

to plot together, esp secretly; conspire
(foll by at) law to give assent or encouragement (to the commission of a wrong)

Origin of connive

C17: from French conniver, from Latin connīvēre to blink, hence, leave uncensured; -nīvēre related to nictāre to wink

Derived 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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