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Synonyms

scheme

American  
[skeem] / skim /

noun

  • schemes
    plural
  1. a plan, design, or program of action to be followed; project.

  2. an underhand plot; intrigue.

    Synonyms:
    conspiracy, cabal, stratagem
  3. a visionary or impractical project.

  4. a body or system of related doctrines, theories, etc..

    a scheme of philosophy.

  5. any system of correlated things, parts, etc., or the manner of its arrangement.

    Synonyms:
    schema, pattern
  6. a plan, program, or policy officially adopted and followed, as by a government or business.

    The company's pension scheme is very successful.

  7. an analytical or tabular statement.

  8. a diagram, map, or the like.

  9. an astrological diagram of the heavens.


verb (used with object)

  • schemes,
    present (3rd person singular)
  • schemed,
    past participle,  past
  • scheming
    present participle
  1. to devise as a scheme; conspire; plot; contrive.

verb (used without object)

  • schemes,
    present (3rd person singular)
  • schemed,
    past participle,  past
  • scheming
    present participle
  1. to lay schemes; devise plans; plot.

scheme British  
/ skiːm /

noun

  1. a systematic plan for a course of action

  2. a systematic arrangement of correlated parts; system

  3. a secret plot

  4. a visionary or unrealizable project

  5. a chart, diagram, or outline

  6. an astrological diagram giving the aspects of celestial bodies at a particular time

  7. a plan formally adopted by a commercial enterprise or governmental body, as for pensions, etc

  8. an area of housing that is laid out esp by a local authority; estate

"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

verb

  1. (tr) to devise a system for

  2. to form intrigues (for) in an underhand manner

"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
scheme Idioms  
  1. see best-laid plans (schemes).


Synonym Usage

See plan. See plot.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Inflected Forms

Nouns

Participles

Conjugated Forms

Present

Past

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.

Keep Reading on Vocabulary.com

Vocabulary lists containing scheme

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:

McFadden spoke to the BBC during a visit to Boots in Nottingham, where young people had started jobs in a pilot of the government's Jobs Guarantee scheme.

From BBC Aug. 27, 2026

Plaid ministers want to phase the rest of the scheme over time - but until that is spelled out the party will continue to face scrutiny over how it's achieved.

From BBC Aug. 26, 2026

Ofgem has a proposed debt relief scheme on the table, and campaigners keep telling them to get on with it, urging the government as to provide funding for it to be implemented.

From BBC Aug. 26, 2026

That is still pretty small in the grand scheme of things: U.S. money-market funds are close to $8 trillion.

From The Wall Street Journal Aug. 24, 2026

It was September when Abel evolved another scheme for getting home.

From "Abel's Island" by William Steig

It added: "Authorities have the discretion to design their own schemes, within the CRF guidance, to ensure the poorest children do not go hungry."

From BBC Aug. 24, 2026

Host Cafe, in the heart of the City of London, is home to one of these schemes.

From BBC Aug. 22, 2026

The results indicate that pollinator-friendly planting schemes may need to consider more than simply providing large numbers of flowers.

From Science Daily Aug. 19, 2026

Santa Margarita coach Carson Palmer used to take advantage of throwing to the tight end when playing at USC and in the NFL, and there’s no doubt Gazzaniga feels comfortable in the Eagles’ offensive schemes.

From Los Angeles Times Aug. 14, 2026

If she could startle the chameleon just enough, he might show his real face, and V might be able to foil any chameleon-like schemes he’d been hatching.

From "A Tangle of Knots" by Lisa Graff

Sean McVay and the Rams schemed against Kliff Kingsbury when he coached the Arizona Cardinals.

From Los Angeles Times Feb. 6, 2026

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

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

Where are the well-rounded characters, smart dialogue, ingenious scheming on one side and even more ingenious problem-solving on the other?

From The Wall Street Journal Aug. 20, 2026

It could be argued Tielemans' arrival addresses an issue Manchester United have had since Carrick quit in 2018; the scheming midfielder with an eye for a pass, who can break a defensive line.

From BBC Aug. 12, 2026

Ms. Aviv writes of a psychotic mother with persecutory delusions who thinks her eldest daughter is in league with a scheming professor.

From The Wall Street Journal Jul. 24, 2026

When “The Traitors” executive producer Mike Cotton and his colleagues brought the first season of Peacock’s reality competition to American audiences, doing so with a cast of unknowns scheming for a six-figure prize seemed risky.

From Los Angeles Times Jun. 8, 2026

It wasn’t only wickedness and scheming that made people unhappy, it was confusion and misunderstanding; above all, it was the failure to grasp the simple truth that other people are as real as you.

From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan

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