1
as in ruse
a clever often underhanded means to achieve an end
an e-mail scheme to trick unwary Internet users into disclosing passwords and financial information
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2
as in conspiracy
a secret plan for accomplishing evil or unlawful ends
a scheme to kidnap the president's daughter
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3
as in plan
a method worked out in advance for achieving some objective
a scheme to upgrade the city's mass transit system
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as in to plot
to engage in a secret plan to accomplish evil or unlawful ends
the town inspector had schemed to overlook the contractor's code violations in exchange for a substantial bribe
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of scheme
Jordana Comiter, PEOPLE, 15 May 2026
The Securities and Exchange Commission had alleged that the two men misled investors as part of a bribery and fraud scheme tied to solar contracts in India.
—Priyanka Salve, CNBC, 15 May 2026
Jackie Strause, HollywoodReporter, 29 Apr. 2026
In a court filing Tuesday, prosecutors said Fairley intends to plead guilty in the sports betting case and a separate case in which he and others are accused of scheming to obtain nonpublic information to bet on college basketball and Chinese Basketball Association games.
—Michael R. Sisak, Chicago Tribune, 28 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for scheme
Noun
Treese was allegedly beaten with a baseball bat in what prosecutors have claimed was a murder-for-hire scheme in 1997.
—Jordana Comiter, PEOPLE, 15 May 2026
The Securities and Exchange Commission had alleged that the two men misled investors as part of a bribery and fraud scheme tied to solar contracts in India.
—Priyanka Salve, CNBC, 15 May 2026
Verb
And did that excite you for the idea that June and Lydia could be scheming together?
—Jackie Strause, HollywoodReporter, 29 Apr. 2026
In a court filing Tuesday, prosecutors said Fairley intends to plead guilty in the sports betting case and a separate case in which he and others are accused of scheming to obtain nonpublic information to bet on college basketball and Chinese Basketball Association games.
—Michael R. Sisak, Chicago Tribune, 28 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for scheme
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scheme
Noun
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They are accused of using several ruses to force their way into people’s homes, assaulting unsuspecting residents and holding them hostage for their own money, and demanding access to their crypto accounts.—
Andy Rose,
CNN Money,
14 May 2026
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To sustain her ruse, Suzanne discovers volumes of diaries written by the painter’s late wife.—
Ben Croll,
IndieWire,
12 May 2026
Noun
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Now, he's pardoned all of these people, despite the fact that they were convicted of violently assaulting police officers, conspiring to overthrow the government of the United States in seditious conspiracy, and so on.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
17 May 2026
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Shannon Kurrie, 61, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud in the scheme earlier this month, according to the federal agency.—
Nick Lentz,
CBS News,
16 May 2026
Noun
-
Jeffries, for his part, was far too careful to broadcast any grand plans.—
Jason Zengerle,
New Yorker,
18 May 2026
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Before getting to address eager investors, Musk had to testify to a jury in downtown Oakland in an effort to prove his case and, if successful, potentially throw a major wrench into OpenAI's ambitious plans.—
Ashley Capoot,Lora Kolodny,
CNBC,
18 May 2026
Verb
-
In Albany, Jeffries was part of a group of young Black and Latino lawmakers from New York City who played pickup basketball together and plotted legislative strategy over beers at a Bonefish Grill.—
Jason Zengerle,
New Yorker,
18 May 2026
-
But soon the 50-year-old character actor will be joining the DCU and plotting to conquer and collect the world as Brainiac, the villain of James Gunn’s Superman sequel Man of Tomorrow.—
Scott Roxborough,
HollywoodReporter,
17 May 2026
Noun
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Winston makes a cameo to execute another electric Ford Field trick play, and the Giants lose a close one with their offense starting to find a new gear.—
Pat Leonard,
New York Daily News,
15 May 2026
-
Sophisticated as chatbots’ responses may be, they are stitched together from statistical patterns in large datasets—an impressive trick but one that still falls short of the breadth and reliability in human-level clinical reasoning.—
Cody Cottier,
Scientific American,
15 May 2026
Noun
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The strategy has already proven effective for other retail categories.—
Alexandra Harrell,
Footwear News,
15 May 2026
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The real test is whether those investments are pursued as isolated initiatives or as parts of one coherent strategy for managing growth in volatility while earning customer trust.—
Marcus Balzereit,
Forbes.com,
15 May 2026
Noun
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That data only reflects damage caused by airstrikes, drone attacks and remote and improvised explosive device, or IED, explosions.—
Chantal Da Silva,
NBC news,
13 May 2026
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That question can save you from buying a device for a future feature that may arrive much later than expected.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
13 May 2026
Noun
-
Here’s your blueprint to getting your torch lit.—
Terry Terrones,
HollywoodReporter,
13 May 2026
-
The New York Yankees and their 27 World Series titles have been the blueprint for every modern MLB franchise to follow.—
Austin Perry OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
13 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Scheme.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scheme. Accessed 20 May. 2026.
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