intrigue
Americanverb (used with object)
-
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.
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to achieve or earn by appealing to another's curiosity, fancy, or interest.
to intrigue one's way into another's notice.
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to draw or capture.
Her interest was intrigued by the strange symbol.
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to accomplish or force by crafty plotting or underhand machinations.
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Obsolete. to entangle.
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Obsolete. to trick or cheat.
verb (used without object)
noun
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the use of underhand machinations or deceitful stratagems.
- Synonyms:
- manipulation
-
such a machination or stratagem or a series of them; a plot or crafty dealing.
political intrigues.
- Synonyms:
- manipulation
-
a secret or illicit love affair.
-
the series of complications forming the plot of a play.
verb
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(tr) to make interested or curious
I'm intrigued by this case, Watson
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(intr) to make secret plots or employ underhand methods; conspire
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to carry on a clandestine love affair
noun
-
the act or an instance of secret plotting, etc
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a clandestine love affair
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the quality of arousing interest or curiosity; beguilement
Synonym Usage
See conspiracy.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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intriguesimple
-
intriguessimple
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have intriguedperfect
-
has intriguedperfect
-
am intriguingprogressive
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are intriguingprogressive
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is intriguingprogressive
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have been intriguingperfect progressive
-
has been intriguingperfect progressive
Past
-
intriguedsimple
-
had intriguedperfect
-
was intriguingprogressive
-
were intriguingprogressive
-
had been intriguingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of intrigue
First recorded in 1640–50; from French intriguer, from Italian intrigare, from Latin intrīcāre “to entangle”; see intricate
Explanation
An intrigue is a secret plot. If you ever become the monarch of a small island kingdom, keep watch for signs of any intrigue against you. Intrigue comes from the Latin verb intricare, "to entangle," and is related to intricate. It can be a noun, meaning "underhanded plot," or a verb for the act of plotting. Agents of two opposing powers intrigue against each other. In the late 19th century it also came to mean the feeling of curiosity or interest. If someone's ideas intrigue you, you want to know more about them.
Vocabulary lists containing intrigue
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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:
Some seek to dismiss the journalistic intrigue as to who might get which roles as soap opera – but it matters because the people selected shape the outlook, style and tone of a government.
From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026
That doesn’t save “Cape Fear” from being a 10-hour slog set to an imitation of Bernard Herrmann’s anxiety-inducing score, but it does lend a little intrigue to Antosca and Bardem’s interpretation of Max.
From Salon ● Jul. 17, 2026
“The first intrigue is finding out who Dan Tana is,” says Johnson.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026
Its low temperature has added to its intrigue.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 28, 2026
What she felt must have been as much intrigue as terror.
From "Every Day" by David Levithan
More than 220 years later, the Lewis and Clark expedition still intrigues.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 16, 2026
If the idea of moving into a university retirement community intrigues you, take these steps before signing a contract:
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 10, 2026
"I just take what intrigues me from different genres and different moods and apply them to the stories I want to tell."
From BBC ● Apr. 2, 2026
From the start, “The Gilded Age” has taken care to authentically depict Peggy’s narrative trajectory without denying the same juicy intrigues coloring other characters’ lives.
From Salon ● Aug. 11, 2025
Find something, that intrigues you and study it with all your heart!
From "The Science of Breakable Things" by Tae Keller
It’s bold, a little funky, and exactly the kind of recipe that makes people either immediately intrigued or deeply skeptical.
From Salon ● Jul. 7, 2026
I know that’s not easy, which is perhaps why you’re intrigued by options like debt consolidation and hiring someone to negotiate down your bills.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 30, 2026
Gibson Capital, which now manages $3 billion, was intrigued with getting easy access for its high-net-worth clients.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 20, 2026
He added that he was also intrigued at the American practice of not including sales tax in the listed price of an item, something that is commonly done in England.
From BBC ● Jun. 19, 2026
What particularly intrigued him, though, was that this tournament would be the qualifying tournament for the Interzonal, which was the beginning of the path to the World Championship.
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
It is intriguing that Burnham says this came up on Makerfield doorstep, as is the fact that significant unions now prioritise a policy that affects their members on or around £50,000 a year.
From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026
The research team came across intriguing findings from their study of shift workers in the Arctic Circle, where the sun barely sets in summer and sleep has to be won from the never-ending day.
From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2026
Discount brokers don’t like to talk about how many customers defy the odds, but Peterffy’s firm provided an intriguing clue via an advertisement.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026
What makes this behavior so intriguing is that the crystals were not used as tools, weapons, or jewelry.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 15, 2026
This is an intriguing statistic: the same people who routinely steal more than 10 percent of his bagels almost never stoop to stealing his money box—a tribute to the nuanced social calculus of theft.
From "Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything" by Steven D. Levitt
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.
