connive
Americanverb (used without object)
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to cooperate secretly; conspire (often followed bywith ).
They connived to take over the business.
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to avoid noticing something that one is expected to oppose or condemn; give aid to wrongdoing by forbearing to act or speak (usually followed byat ).
The policeman connived at traffic violations.
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to be indulgent toward something others oppose or criticize (usually followed byat ).
to connive at childlike exaggerations.
verb
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to plot together, esp secretly; conspire
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(foll by at) law to give assent or encouragement (to the commission of a wrong)
Other Word Forms
Etymology
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)
Explanation
To connive is to plan or plot to do something illegal or wrong. Conniving is considered dishonest and cowardly. If someone accuses you of conniving, that's definitely not a compliment. Conniving usually occurs in secret, and people who connive are up to no good. Criminals planning a bank robbery are conniving. Crooked politicians looking for a bribe are conniving. Villains connive, and conniving is associated with conspiracies and dishonesty. The opposite of conniving is being honest and straightforward.
Vocabulary lists containing connive
300 Most Difficult "SAT" Words
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Advanced English Words
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"The Censors," Vocabulary from the short story
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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.
It stars Brian Cox as the Roy family patriarch and Jeremy Strong as one of his children, who connive to succeed their father as the company’s leader.
From Seattle Times • Feb. 23, 2023
Actually, she doesn't and she will manipulate, exploit and connive anyone without giving it a second thought if it serves her best interests.
From Salon • Aug. 17, 2022
“The real function of the mirror was otherwise. It was to make the woman connive in treating herself as, first and foremost, a sight.”
From New York Times • Nov. 8, 2021
Their claims have been amplified in recent weeks, as the “Varsity Blues” college admissions scandal revealed how well-off families connive to get kids into selective colleges.
From Slate • Apr. 3, 2019
Arthur ought to have blushed at this high praise, but instead, he stolidly explained his epigram, and observed further that no literary man who respected himself would connive in a boom.
From Masterman and Son by Dawson, W. J. (William James)
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.
