collude

verb col·lude \ kə-ˈlüd \

|Updated on: 16 Jun 2018

Examples: collude in a Sentence

Editor's Note: collude Has Latin Roots

Definition of collude

colluded; colluding

intransitive verb

: conspire, plot

colluded to keep prices high

See collude defined for English-language learners

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Examples of collude in a Sentence

The two companies had colluded to fix prices.
accused of colluding to block the sale of the vacant land

Recent Examples of collude from the Web

That’s in addition to the $6.7 million spent in the first five months, starting in May 2017, when Mueller was appointed to investigate whether President Donald Trump or any of his aides colluded with Russia during the 2016 presidential election.

— laignee barron, Time, "Robert Mueller’s Russia Investigation Has Cost $16.7 Million, Report Shows," 1 June 2018
The rest reflects spending by Justice Department components in support of his investigation, which includes whether President Donald Trump or anyone close to him colluded with Russians.

— chris strohm, Bloomberg.com, "Mueller Runs Up $16 Million Tab in Trump-Russia Investigation," 31 May 2018
But this has been Donald Jr.'s defense all along: that since no Clinton dirt ever materialized in that conference room, his efforts to collude proved unfruitful, and there can be nothing untoward about his conduct.

— jay willis, GQ, "Donald Trump Jr.’s Explanations for the Trump Tower Russia Meeting Don't Add Up," 16 May 2018
In 1993, Spada, acting as a grand juror, produced a report accusing Hartford and New Britain police officers of colluding with gangs to sell drugs and launder the proceeds.

— matthew ormseth, courant.com, "Arthur Spada, Former Superior Court Judge And State Police Commissioner, Dies At 85," 29 Apr. 2018
The full report, the key findings of which were published in March, finds that the Trump campaign did not collude with Russia.

— louise matsakis, WIRED, "The House Intel Committee's Russia Report Doesn't Let Trump Off the Hook," 27 Apr. 2018
One question looms above all others: Did Trump and his inner circle collude with Russia to undermine Hillary Clinton’s presidential bid?

— matt ford, New Republic, "A Third Way to Think About Russiagate," 22 Feb. 2018
Both individuals are also alleging that NFL teams colluded to keep them out of the league.

— peter dawson, star-telegram, "Report: Here's what President Trump told Jerry Jones about national anthem protests," 30 May 2018
What's clear, however, is that the owners don't need to actually collude.

— john feinstein, chicagotribune.com, "This time, it's Eric Reid's turn to be bullied by the NFL," 13 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'collude.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

collude Has Latin Roots

Our English "lude" words (allude, collude, delude, elude, and prelude) are based on the Latin verb ludere, meaning "to play." Collude dates back to 1525 and combines ludere and the prefix col-, meaning "with" or "together." The verb is younger than the related noun collusion, which appeared sometime in the 14th century with the specific meaning "secret agreement or cooperation." Despite their playful history, collude and collusion have always suggested deceit or trickery rather than good-natured fun.