scheme
Americannoun
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a plan, design, or program of action to be followed; project.
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an underhand plot; intrigue.
- Synonyms:
- conspiracy, cabal, stratagem
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a visionary or impractical project.
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a body or system of related doctrines, theories, etc..
a scheme of philosophy.
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any system of correlated things, parts, etc., or the manner of its arrangement.
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a plan, program, or policy officially adopted and followed, as by a government or business.
The company's pension scheme is very successful.
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an analytical or tabular statement.
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a diagram, map, or the like.
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an astrological diagram of the heavens.
verb (used with object)
verb (used without object)
noun
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a systematic plan for a course of action
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a systematic arrangement of correlated parts; system
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a secret plot
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a visionary or unrealizable project
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a chart, diagram, or outline
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an astrological diagram giving the aspects of celestial bodies at a particular time
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a plan formally adopted by a commercial enterprise or governmental body, as for pensions, etc
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an area of housing that is laid out esp by a local authority; estate
verb
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(tr) to devise a system for
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to form intrigues (for) in an underhand manner
Synonym Usage
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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schemernoun
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subschemenoun
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underschemenoun
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outschemeverb (used with object)
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schemelessadjective
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unschemedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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schemesimple
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schemessimple
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have schemedperfect
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has schemedperfect
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am schemingprogressive
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are schemingprogressive
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is schemingprogressive
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have been schemingperfect progressive
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has been schemingperfect progressive
Past
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schemedsimple
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had schemedperfect
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was schemingprogressive
-
were schemingprogressive
-
had been schemingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of scheme
First recorded in 1545–55; from Medieval Latin schēma (stem schēmat- ), from Greek schêma “form, figure”
Explanation
A scheme is an elaborate plan or plot. It's going to take a really solid scheme, probably involving teleportation or some sort of temporary cloning, to make an appearance at both parties at once. Scheme comes to us from the Latin word for "figure." And it's still used today to refer to a set of drawings and figures used to map out something. Or maybe you’ve heard people talk about something in the scheme of life." In that case they're talking about something that fits into the bigger picture. But don't forget that schemes often carry a negative connotation — the word brings to mind devious plans and secret plots organized by scheming bad guys.
Vocabulary lists containing scheme
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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TEKS ELAR Academic Vocabulary List (5th-7th grades)
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"The Ransom of Red Chief" by O. Henry
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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.
See Examples For:
Unrelated to the Blue Flag scheme, red flags can sometimes be flown at beaches and bathing waters following a short-term pollution incident.
From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026
It recommended, external the government establish an independent statutory regulatory scheme for funeral directors in England "as a matter of urgency".
From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026
During a visit to Ankara in February, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis hailed the scheme as "particularly successful".
From Barron's ● Jul. 31, 2026
For Ikra Altumsek, and many other Turkish tourists, a visa-on-arrival scheme to visit several of Greece's Aegean islands has greatly simplified travel to this corner of the EU, previously off-limits without a hard-to-get Schengen visa.
From Barron's ● Jul. 31, 2026
“I just don’t want anyone, not even Gwydion, dreaming up another scheme to have me turn invisible.”
From "The Black Cauldron" by Lloyd Alexander
The Canadian mockumentary follows a musical duo determined to play at a Toronto rock club through various schemes that inevitably go awry.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 31, 2026
The report cited the rise of AI, which it said “allows criminal actors to potentially conduct successful fraud schemes against individuals, businesses, and financial institutions.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2026
Additionally, all 12 trustees and 24 schemes are now onboarded to iFAST’s Hong Kong Pension platform as at end-April, which is expected to contribute positively to revenue through 2030.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026
A single father using a community larder to feed his family says he is facing a difficult summer as food donations fall and voucher schemes end.
From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026
The manpower needs created by the six-year war generated several emancipation schemes whereby slaves would be freed and their owners compensated in return for enlistment for the duration of the conflict.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
He schemed to get an imported copy seized by customs to trigger a court case over its content.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 30, 2026
Afforded extra space by his manager's decision to play Jack Grealish alongside him in a central position, De Bruyne schemed in the way he usually does.
From BBC ● Dec. 4, 2024
Sean McVay schemed against Philadelphia Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio only once as the Rams’ coach.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 24, 2024
City-states, hoping to win civic glory, sometimes schemed to bribe top athletes to falsely claim that city as their own.
From Salon ● Aug. 10, 2024
No matter how she screamed and schemed, her husband refused to loosen his purse strings.
From "In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson" by Bette Bao Lord
And Zendaya’s Athena “turns out to be a vulnerable victim of war, or perhaps a projection of Odysseus’ conscience — not a scheming and bloodthirsty war goddess.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
But federal prosecutors argued that Left corrupted the business model by scheming to trade quickly around his statements on social media, where he had a huge following.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 4, 2026
A year ago her predecessor, Peter Kyle, unveiled a set of government tools powered by AI, named "Humphrey" after the scheming official from the classic BBC sitcom Yes, Minister.
From BBC ● Apr. 17, 2026
She played the scheming, seductive Iris in the 1970 blaxploitation comedy classic “Cotton Comes to Harlem.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 16, 2026
I had to tell my mother—that I knew what she was doing, her scheming ways of making me miserable.
From "The Joy Luck Club" by Amy Tan
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.
