as in schemes
a secret plan for accomplishing evil or unlawful ends
incredibly complicated machinations to assassinate the president that inevitably failed
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Recent Examples of machinations
Hugo kept his cool as his crew became increasingly ensnared in Solène’s machinations and managed to keep a respectable distance from the interpersonal drama of the boat.
—
Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 16 Sep. 2025
The teams may again meet this weekend in a match-up that will again stoke the political machinations between the foes.
—Tristan Lavalette, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2025
In Greenberg’s novel, Cherry and Hero are already secret lovers who conspire to thwart the menfolk’s machinations.
—Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 5 Sep. 2025
The machinations violated the NBA’s salary cap rules.
—Jason Clinkscales, Sportico.com, 3 Sep. 2025
Montas’ trip to the IL simplifies some roster machinations for this year’s Mets, but losing him as even an option for 2026 or modest eat-most-of-the-money trade bait this winter would hurt.
—Tim Britton, New York Times, 25 Aug. 2025
So is Blood of My Blood‘s second main thread, in which the machinations of Clan Mackenzie are laid bare.
—Graham Hillard, The Washington Examiner, 22 Aug. 2025
His machinations were getting no coverage to speak of, but even at that early stage, Vrabel — Volin noted — was purging the Patriots roster of players connected to his predecessors, one-year head coach Jerod Mayo and before that, legendary head coach Bill Belichick.
—Jon Vankin, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 Aug. 2025
Fans of the Mountain West and Pac-12 should attempt to ignore the legal machinations — a court filing here, a statement there — at least until the parties settle or head to trial.
—Jon Wilner, Mercury News, 15 Aug. 2025
Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 16 Sep. 2025
The teams may again meet this weekend in a match-up that will again stoke the political machinations between the foes.
—Tristan Lavalette, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2025
In Greenberg’s novel, Cherry and Hero are already secret lovers who conspire to thwart the menfolk’s machinations.
—Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 5 Sep. 2025
The machinations violated the NBA’s salary cap rules.
—Jason Clinkscales, Sportico.com, 3 Sep. 2025
Montas’ trip to the IL simplifies some roster machinations for this year’s Mets, but losing him as even an option for 2026 or modest eat-most-of-the-money trade bait this winter would hurt.
—Tim Britton, New York Times, 25 Aug. 2025
So is Blood of My Blood‘s second main thread, in which the machinations of Clan Mackenzie are laid bare.
—Graham Hillard, The Washington Examiner, 22 Aug. 2025
His machinations were getting no coverage to speak of, but even at that early stage, Vrabel — Volin noted — was purging the Patriots roster of players connected to his predecessors, one-year head coach Jerod Mayo and before that, legendary head coach Bill Belichick.
—Jon Vankin, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 Aug. 2025
Fans of the Mountain West and Pac-12 should attempt to ignore the legal machinations — a court filing here, a statement there — at least until the parties settle or head to trial.
—Jon Wilner, Mercury News, 15 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for machinations
Noun
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The lack of action or will to curb this has led some researchers to seriously propose planetary-scale geoengineering schemes.—
Alec Luhn,
Scientific American,
11 Sep. 2025
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But his greedy schemes and her desire to keep her dog immortal led to the downfall of her once-thriving business and turned her into a woman on the run.—
Emily Blackwood,
PEOPLE,
11 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Conspiracy theories on Butler shooting persist In more than a year since the shooting and preliminary investigation took place, the FBI has released little additional information about Crooks, opening another avenue for conspiracies to run amok, the New York Times reported.—
Kinsey Crowley,
USA Today,
11 Sep. 2025
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The narrowing of communication channels is perhaps the most devastating impact conspiracies can have on a relationship.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes.com,
8 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Clifton and a sales associate allegedly convinced the couple to invest $100,000 in two plots of land — one in Kansas City, Missouri, and one in Blue Springs — saying that the lots had already been surveyed and would be rental-ready in four to six months.—
Ilana Arougheti,
Kansas City Star,
16 Sep. 2025
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Some bodies are on the road, in plots close to the center of Ntoyo.—
Jordan King,
MSNBC Newsweek,
15 Sep. 2025
Noun
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While plundering a dungeon lair and stealing artifacts from a museum both have heist elements to them, Skullduggery looks into the other intrigues of adventures in urban environments.—
Rob Wieland,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
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Senior running back/defensive end Ishmaiah Elliott intrigues.—
Rick Armstrong,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Machinations.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/machinations. Accessed 19 Sep. 2025.
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