connive

con·nive

intransitive verb \kə-ˈnīv\

con·nivedcon·niv·ing

Definition of CONNIVE

1

: to pretend ignorance of or fail to take action against something one ought to oppose <the government connived in the rebels' military buildup>

2

a : to be indulgent or in secret sympathy : wink

b : to cooperate secretly or have a secret understanding

3

: conspire, intrigue <accused his opponents of conniving to defeat the proposal>

— con·niv·er noun

Examples of CONNIVE

1. <the principal connived at all the school absences that were recorded on the day of the city's celebration of its Super Bowl victory>
2. <suspects that his coworkers are conniving to get him fired>

Origin of CONNIVE

French or Latin; French conniver, from Latin conivēre, connivēre to close the eyes, connive, from com- + -nivēre (akin to nictare to wink); akin to Old English & Old High German hnīgan to bow

First Known Use: 1601

Related to CONNIVE

Synonyms

wink

Related Words

brush (aside or off), condone, disregard, excuse, forgive, gloss (over), gloze (over), ignore, overlook, pardon, pass over, shrug off, tolerate

Near Antonyms

disapprove (of), frown (on or upon); deny, disallow, refuse

Rhymes with CONNIVE

alive, archive, Argive, arrive, back dive, beehive, contrive, crash-dive, deprive, derive, disk drive, endive, hard drive, high five, high-five, line drive, nosedive, ogive, revive, self-drive, skin-dive, skydive, survive, swan dive, take five, test-drive