collude

verb col·lude \ kə-ˈlüd \

|Updated on: 11 Aug 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

Kaepernick later filed a grievance against the N.F.L. and the owners, accusing them of colluding to keep him out of the league.

— ken belson, New York Times, "N.F.L. Players Association Files Grievance Over Anthem Policy," 10 July 2018
American Airlines, the world’s largest carrier, has agreed to pay $45 million to settle a lawsuit filed by passengers who accused the nation’s biggest airlines of colluding to limit capacity and keep airfares high.

— hugo martin, latimes.com, "American Airlines agrees to pay $45 million to settle antitrust lawsuit filed by passengers," 18 June 2018
She's now represented by the hard-charging Michael Avenatti, who on Wednesday filed a suit on her behalf accusing Davidson and Cohen of colluding against her on behalf of Trump.

— NBC News, "Stormy Daniels' former lawyer countersues, alleging defamation," 8 June 2018
Kaepernick, who was released by the 49ers after the 2016 season and remains unsigned, has a pending grievance that accuses teams of colluding against him to ban him from the league.

— sam farmer, sandiegouniontribune.com, "NFL changes national anthem policy to ban kneeling," 23 May 2018
DiGenova has appeared on Fox News accusing the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Justice Department of trying to frame Trump with false charges of colluding with Russia during the campaign.

— karen freifeld, Anchorage Daily News, "Trump not adding two lawyers to legal team, citing conflicts," 25 Mar. 2018
But Catholic Bishop Salvador Rangel and others criticize the Mexican and local governments, pointing to corruption and accusing police of colluding with criminals.

— david agren, USA TODAY, "Mexican cartels pushing more heroin after U.S. states relax marijuana laws," 20 Feb. 2018
Whether the Trump campaign secretly colluded with the Russian government to damage Clinton’s bid is still an open investigative subject for Mueller.

— matt ford, The New Republic, "Truth Without Consequences," 13 July 2018
Special counsel Robert Mueller is investigating whether Trump associates colluded with Moscow’s election-meddling efforts, which Mr. Trump has denied.

— rebecca ballhaus, WSJ, "Trump Says He Expects to ‘Get Along’ With Putin at Summit," 12 July 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.