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Synonym Chooser

How is the word artifice different from other nouns like it?

Some common synonyms of artifice are feint, maneuver, ruse, stratagem, trick, and wile. While all these words mean "an indirect means to gain an end," artifice implies ingenious contrivance or invention.

the clever artifices of the stage

When would feint be a good substitute for artifice?

While in some cases nearly identical to artifice, feint implies a diversion or distraction of attention away from one's real intent.

a feint toward the enemy's left flank

When can maneuver be used instead of artifice?

While the synonyms maneuver and artifice are close in meaning, maneuver suggests adroit and skillful avoidance of difficulty.

last-minute maneuvers to avert bankruptcy

When is ruse a more appropriate choice than artifice?

The synonyms ruse and artifice are sometimes interchangeable, but ruse stresses an attempt to mislead by a false impression.

the ruses of smugglers

Where would stratagem be a reasonable alternative to artifice?

The words stratagem and artifice are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, stratagem implies a ruse used to entrap, outwit, circumvent, or surprise an opponent or enemy.

the stratagem-filled game

When is it sensible to use trick instead of artifice?

The meanings of trick and artifice largely overlap; however, trick may imply deception, roguishness, illusion, and either an evil or harmless end.

the tricks of the trade

When might wile be a better fit than artifice?

The words wile and artifice can be used in similar contexts, but wile suggests an attempt to entrap or deceive with false allurements.

used all of his wiles to ingratiate himself

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of artifice There was a great sense of artifice because of the sense of magic that her character adopts. Bill Desowitz, IndieWire, 15 Jan. 2025 Drag, at its best, is the perfect illustration of that tension between the artifice of gender and its very real social meanings. James Factora, Them, 19 Sep. 2024 If only that were the only instance where such glaring artifice strengthens the reality of Taylor-Johnson’s performance. David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 11 Dec. 2024 One thing that defines theater-kid energy in my mind is using artifice to get to an emotional honesty. Mikael Wood, Los Angeles Times, 6 Dec. 2024 See all Example Sentences for artifice 
Recent Examples of Synonyms for artifice
Noun
  • Matty, for her part, isn’t worried about getting in any real trouble if her ruse is uncovered.
    Noel Murray, Vulture, 30 Jan. 2025
  • But some of the writers fell for the alleged ruse, which eventually involved the literary agent from a company called PageTurner Press & Media asking for advance payments for services such as book insurance, hiring editors to help update the book or hiring publicists to promote it.
    Alex Riggins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Jan. 2025
Noun
  • Gilded by privilege and cunning, Glinda is a popular young woman who desires to wield magic.
    Destiny Jackson, Deadline, 23 Jan. 2025
  • There’s an unapologetic cunning at the heart of this series, and a mercurial spirit that’s as slippery as blood on an Italian marble floor.
    Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 4 Apr. 2024
Noun
  • These projects teach employable skills that recruiters look for on resumes. Participation in quantitative finance competitions and data challenges.
    Brianna Kamienski, USA TODAY, 1 Feb. 2025
  • Learning a skill in the architectural field may open new doors to success.
    Essence, Essence, 1 Feb. 2025
Noun
  • The series was loosely inspired by the non-fiction book The Woman Who Fooled the World, written by Beau Donelly and Nick Toscano, the two journalists who uncovered the details of Gibson’s deception.
    Abid Rahman, The Hollywood Reporter, 1 Feb. 2025
  • One of the great joys of the U.S. version of The Traitors is watching familiar faces across the reality TV map converge in a game of strategy and deception (and, yes, mehrduhr).
    Joe Reid, Vulture, 30 Jan. 2025
Noun
  • After a season of treachery and deception, the winner or winners of The Traitors UK Season 3 have been revealed.
    Armando Tinoco, Deadline, 24 Jan. 2025
  • This would be immediately followed by my dad standing up, racing over to my uncle, and sometimes grabbing him by the collar to stop him from completing an action that in their eyes seemed to be an act of utter betrayal and treachery.
    Wayne Chan, San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 Jan. 2025
Noun
  • The Times has reported that in 2020 and 2021, the period when prosecutors say the money laundering scheme was underway, The Epoch Times donated $16 million to Shen Yun and a school that trains its performers.
    Michael Rothfeld, New York Times, 6 Feb. 2025
  • The lawsuit alleged RealPage engaged in a collusion scheme with landlords that resulted in higher rent across the country.
    Elizabeth Schulze, ABC News, 6 Feb. 2025
Noun
  • Like any gadfly, Kennedy’s willingness to challenge institutions and conventional wisdom has sometimes led him to question things that needed questioning, not least during the Covid era’s riot of hubris and deceit in the public health sector.
    The Editors, National Review, 29 Jan. 2025
  • The casual deceit that had served him in prison was proving useful.
    Joshua Kaplan, ProPublica, 4 Jan. 2025
Noun
  • This sequence introduces The Agency as a maze of contradictory nationalist motivations, paranoia-inducing surveillance, and prevalent subterfuge — and, in its hidden center, a love story.
    Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 24 Jan. 2025
  • Using a figurehead Then again, Trump might just want to avoid all of these legal subterfuges by following the example of George and Lurleen Wallace.
    Philip Klinkner, The Conversation, 16 Jan. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Artifice.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/artifice. Accessed 13 Feb. 2025.

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