intrigue
to arouse the curiosity or interest of by unusual, new, or otherwise fascinating or compelling qualities; appeal strongly to; captivate: The plan intrigues me, but I wonder if it will work.
to achieve or earn by appealing to another's curiosity, fancy, or interest: to intrigue one's way into another's notice.
to draw or capture: Her interest was intrigued by the strange symbol.
to accomplish or force by crafty plotting or underhand machinations.
Obsolete. to entangle.
Obsolete. to trick or cheat.
to plot craftily or underhandedly.
to carry on a secret or illicit love affair.
the use of underhand machinations or deceitful stratagems.
such a machination or stratagem or a series of them; a plot or crafty dealing: political intrigues.
a secret or illicit love affair.
the series of complications forming the plot of a play.
Origin of intrigue
1synonym study For intrigue
Other words for intrigue
Other words from intrigue
- in·tri·guer, noun
- in·tri·guing·ly, adverb
- out·in·trigue, verb (used with object), out·in·trigued, out·in·tri·guing.
- un·in·tri·guing, adjective
Words Nearby intrigue
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use intrigue in a sentence
Pulisic’s situation added to the layers of intrigue leading to the roster selection, the most anticipated in many years because of a deepening player pool and the momentum from two summer championships.
Christian Pulisic and Gio Reyna headline intriguing USMNT roster for start of World Cup qualifiers | Steven Goff | August 26, 2021 | Washington PostIn these next five weeks, the twilight of a lost season for both clubs, it will be rare to stir much intrigue outside their own dugouts.
Josiah Gray, Edward Cabrera impress, but Marlins edge Nats after potential future aces depart | Jesse Dougherty | August 26, 2021 | Washington PostIt is a film with tension and intrigue of the deepest of love stories.
‘Firebird’ is an instantly classic LGBTQ love story | Rob Watson | August 24, 2021 | Washington BladeThe plot hinges on a sliver of political intrigue—involving an activist played by Vicky Krieps, of Phantom Thread fame—that doesn’t really justify all these weird goings-on.
John David Washington Can't Outrun the Tedium of Netflix Thriller Beckett | Stephanie Zacharek | August 13, 2021 | TimeHis lawyer says he was paid based on other more substantial services and even risks Hughes took but declined to elaborate, further stoking the intrigue.
Why Hughes Made So Much on City Lease Deals Is Still Largely a Mystery | Lisa Halverstadt | July 15, 2021 | Voice of San Diego
He held intrigue for journalists converging for the transition of papal power.
On another, more macro level, did you find Europe to be such a cesspool of intrigue?
How The Cold War Endgame Played Out In The Rubble Of The Berlin Wall | William O’Connor | November 9, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTIndia really does intrigue against Pakistan in the same way Pakistan plots against India.
Why So Many Pakistanis Hate Their Nobel Peace Prize Winner | Chris Allbritton | October 10, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe quick-cut trailer suggests a soft-core romp with dramatic intrigue and wry one-liners.
French Political Sex Movie About DSK Sets Cannes Aquiver | Tracy McNicoll | May 17, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe extra layer of intrigue alluded to in that statement is that the WWE itself is an international brand.
He professed both to abominate and despise all mystery, refinement, and intrigue, either in a prince or a minister.
Gulliver's Travels | Jonathan SwiftThe king fell in love with her, and his attempted intrigue led to complications that almost caused a war between France and Spain.
Black Hood knew what it was to be a policeman with hands bound by red tape or political intrigue.
However, if you can forget that, the coils of an admirably woven intrigue will grip your attention and sympathy throughout.
It preyed upon her mind, distorting it, unbalancing it; each glance, each movement of his she exaggerated into an intrigue.
Uncanny Tales | Various
British Dictionary definitions for intrigue
(tr) to make interested or curious: I'm intrigued by this case, Watson
(intr) to make secret plots or employ underhand methods; conspire
(intr often foll by with) to carry on a clandestine love affair
the act or an instance of secret plotting, etc
a clandestine love affair
the quality of arousing interest or curiosity; beguilement
Origin of intrigue
1Derived forms of intrigue
- intriguer, noun
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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