conspire

[ kuhn-spahyuhr ]
See synonyms for conspire on Thesaurus.com
verb (used without object),con·spired, con·spir·ing.
  1. to agree together, especially secretly, to do something wrong, evil, or illegal: They conspired to kill the king.

  2. to act or work together toward the same result or goal: The wind and rain conspired to strip the trees of their fall color.

verb (used with object),con·spired, con·spir·ing.
  1. to plot (something wrong, evil, or illegal).

Origin of conspire

1
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Middle French conspirer, from Latin conspīrāre “to act in harmony, conspire,” equivalent to con- + spīrāre “to breathe”; see origin at con-, spirant, spirit

synonym study For conspire

1. See plot.

Other words for conspire

Other words from conspire

  • con·spir·er, noun
  • con·spir·ing·ly, adverb
  • non·con·spir·ing, adjective
  • pre·con·spire, verb, pre·con·spired, pre·con·spir·ing.
  • un·con·spired, adjective
  • un·con·spir·ing, adjective
  • un·con·spir·ing·ly, adverb

Words that may be confused with conspire

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

British Dictionary definitions for conspire

conspire

/ (kənˈspaɪə) /


verb(when intr, sometimes foll by against)
  1. to plan or agree on (a crime or harmful act) together in secret

  2. (intr) to act together towards some end as if by design: the elements conspired to spoil our picnic

Origin of conspire

1
C14: from Old French conspirer, from Latin conspīrāre to plot together, literally: to breathe together, from spīrāre to breathe

Derived forms of conspire

  • conspirer, noun
  • conspiringly, 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