concoct

verb

con·​coct kən-ˈkäkt 

kän-

concocted; concocting; concocts

transitive verb

1

: to prepare by combining raw materials

concoct a recipe

concocted a tropical fruit smoothie

2

: devise, fabricate

concoct an explanation

concocted a strategy to take control of the company

concocter noun

concoctive

kən-ˈkäk-tiv 

kän-

adjective

Synonyms of concoct

• devise
• invent
• construct

Examples of concoct in a Sentence

The drink was first concocted by a bartender in New York.

She concocted a stew from the leftovers.

Recent Examples on the Web

Her near-empty piggy bank poses a challenge, but Busy Betty gets creative, concocting yummy Christmas cookies to sell in a wintertime twist on lemonade stands. —Lex Goldstein, PEOPLE, 30 Nov. 2025

But, every so often, the gods concoct a minor tragedy for even the most powerful mortals, and a glimpse of life’s futility—and perhaps even its ever-present mortality—breaks briefly through. —Ian Crouch, New Yorker, 28 Nov. 2025

The Minutemen stayed in that limbo for nine years, without any conference media distributions and forced to concoct an annual football schedule from scratch. —Lev Akabas, Sportico.com, 24 Nov. 2025

Employees of NGOs who concoct idealistic plans to address the housing crisis? —Literary Hub, 21 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Latin concoctus, past participle of concoquere to cook together, from com- + coquere to cook — more at cook

First Known Use

1594, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for concoct

• deadlocked
• landlocked
• padlocked
• unblocked
• unlocked
• balked
• blocked
• chalked
• clocked
• cocked
• docked
• flocked

Kids Definition

concoct

verb

con·​coct kən-ˈkäkt 

kän-

1

: to prepare by combining various ingredients

concoct a stew

2

: to think up : invent

concoct a likely story

concoction

-ˈkäk-shən 

noun