1
as in to ignore
to secretly sympathize with or pretend ignorance of something improper or unlawful
the principal connived at all the school absences that were recorded on the day of the city's celebration of its Super Bowl victory
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2
as in to plot
to engage in a secret plan to accomplish evil or unlawful ends
suspects that his coworkers are conniving to get him fired
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Recent Examples of connive
Tim Robbins stars as a simple, entry-level employee at a big New York corporation who is promoted to CEO by a conniving member of the board of directors (Paul Newman), as part of a strategic attempt to tank the stock price following the old CEO’s suicide.
—
James Grebey, Vulture, 23 Dec. 2024
Among the hopefuls with their sights set on the property is the conniving Margo, who lives on the Morgans' block.
—Jessica Wang, EW.com, 12 Dec. 2024
The behind-the-scenes conniving of the senators in the first film gets transposed onto Denzel Washington’s Macrinus and Tim McInnerny’s Thraex.
—Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 22 Nov. 2024
And though Macrinus—brilliant, conniving, vain—is nothing like the characters Denzel played earlier in his career, this performance calls back to his breezy charm in movies like Carl Franklin’s Out of Time (2003) and Devil in a Blue Dress (1995), or Mira Nair’s Mississippi Masala (1991).
—Stephanie Zacharek, TIME, 22 Nov. 2024
See All Example Sentences for connive
James Grebey, Vulture, 23 Dec. 2024
Among the hopefuls with their sights set on the property is the conniving Margo, who lives on the Morgans' block.
—Jessica Wang, EW.com, 12 Dec. 2024
The behind-the-scenes conniving of the senators in the first film gets transposed onto Denzel Washington’s Macrinus and Tim McInnerny’s Thraex.
—Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 22 Nov. 2024
And though Macrinus—brilliant, conniving, vain—is nothing like the characters Denzel played earlier in his career, this performance calls back to his breezy charm in movies like Carl Franklin’s Out of Time (2003) and Devil in a Blue Dress (1995), or Mira Nair’s Mississippi Masala (1991).
—Stephanie Zacharek, TIME, 22 Nov. 2024
See All Example Sentences for connive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for connive
Verb
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And no, not because Disney is ignoring him or passing him over.—
Paul Tassi,
Forbes,
1 Mar. 2025
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But in the 1990s, when social practice art was gaining traction within European museums (especially in the United Kingdom), most Latin American institutions were ignoring that development, which remained limited to underground networks.—
Fabiola Iza,
Artforum,
1 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Was only the first season really plotted out in any meaningful way?—
Erik Kain,
Forbes,
2 Mar. 2025
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Black sharecroppers and tenant farmers were plotting an insurrection.—
Christmaelle Vernet & Kathy Roberts Forde / Made by History,
TIME,
28 Feb. 2025
Verb
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Swift’s soft scarlet sweater, for example, is foolproof for dinner, the movies, or even a game night (wink wink!), while Middleton’s collection of red coats are elegant toppers for the classiest of occasions.—
Alyssa Grabinski,
People.com,
17 Jan. 2025
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Lunar occultations are fun—seeing a bright object close to the moon and suddenly winking out as it’s blocked by our natural satellite can be delightful.—
Phil Plait,
Scientific American,
9 Jan. 2025
Verb
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Trump pardoned former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who spent eight years in prison on multiple corruption charges, including scheming to sell a vacant Senate seat.—
Allison Morrow,
CNN,
28 Feb. 2025
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Throughout the 26-day game, players will build shelter, survive with meager food and hunt their own, compete in exhausting challenges and be forced to scheme and backstab to vote out other players.—
Emily DeLetter,
USA TODAY,
28 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Connive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/connive. Accessed 12 Mar. 2025.
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