conspire

verb

con·​spire kən-ˈspī(-ə)r 

conspired; conspiring

transitive verb

: plot, contrive

intransitive verb

1

a

: to join in a secret agreement to do an unlawful or wrongful act or an act which becomes unlawful as a result of the secret agreement

accused of conspiring to overthrow the government

conspired to monopolize and restrict trade

b

: scheme

2

: to act in harmony toward a common end

Circumstances conspired to defeat his efforts.

… the sun and the wind conspired to make splinters out of solid wood.

—B. J. Oliphant

Synonyms

• collude
• compass
• connive
• contrive
• intrigue
• machinate
• plot
• put up
• scheme

Examples of conspire in a Sentence

conspired to replace the leader with someone more easily influenced

foul weather and airline foul-ups seemed to be conspiring to ruin our vacation

Recent Examples on the Web

Navarro-Sanchez allegedly conspired with two co-defendants, Luis Carlos Davalos-Lopez, 27, and Gustavo Castro-Medina, 28, both of Mexico. —Cara Tabachnick, CBS News, 16 May 2025

How exactly will all these elements conspire to gore one of our heroes? —Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 16 May 2025

According to court documents, the man unknowingly conspired with two undercover FBI agents for months, sharing handwritten diagrams of the military site and proposing an assault involving Molotov cocktails and assault-style weapons. —Gabe Whisnant, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 May 2025

So just the act of conspiring to commit unlawful compensation is considered a crime. —Charles Rabin, Miami Herald, 12 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French conspirer, from Latin conspirare to be in harmony, conspire, from com- + spirare to breathe

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Rhymes for conspire

• briar
• brier
• buyer
• choir
• crier
• cryer
• drier
• dryer
• eyer
• flier
• flyer
• friar

Kids Definition

conspire

verb

con·​spire kən-ˈspī(ə)r 

conspired; conspiring

1

: to agree secretly to do an unlawful act : plot

conspiring to overthrow the dictator

2

: to act together

delays and the weather conspired to spoil our vacation

Legal Definition

conspire

intransitive verb

con·​spire kən-ˈspīr 

conspired; conspiring

: to join in a conspiracy compare solicit

Etymology

Latin conspirare to be in harmony, to join in an unlawful agreement, from com- together + spirare to breathe