Synonyms

conspiratorial

American

[kuhn-spir-uh-tawr-ee-uhl] / kənˌspɪr əˈtɔr i əl /

Sometimes conspiratory

adjective

relating to or being a conspiracy, a secretive plan that is unlawful, harmful, or evil.

They believe these rulings to be the result of a conspiratorial plot cooked up by big business interests.
suggesting or giving the impression of such a plan.

The memory I have of that night is of wicked giggles and conspiratorial whispering about Tim with my best friend Gillian.

Other Word Forms

conspiratorially adverb
nonconspiratorial adjective

Etymology

Origin of conspiratorial

conspiratory + -al ¹

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.

The trouble with most theories about conspiratorial schemes—the weird ones of 4chan and the specious ones of the faculty lounges—is that they arise from motivated reasoning.

From The Wall Street Journal

Then he smiled, this conspiratorial grown-up smile that made the backstage fluorescents feel warmer.

From Salon

Although she renounced some of her past conspiratorial views, the House voted to remove her from her committee assignments shortly after she took office.

From BBC

“What we’re seeing with this phenomenon is that people with either conspiratorial or grandiose delusional thinking get reinforced.”

From Los Angeles Times

While they were busy at their task, he approached Penelope, a greedy, conspiratorial look in his eye.

From Literature

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023