1
as in ruse
a clever often underhanded means to achieve an end
used the artifice of saying his grandmother had died so that he could get the last seat on the plane
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2
as in cunning
skill in achieving one's ends through indirect, subtle, or underhanded means
using their artifice, the Greeks crafted a hollow wooden horse to hide inside and thereby gained entry into the city of Troy
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in skill
subtle or imaginative ability in inventing, devising, or executing something
a painting that could only have been created with the artifice of a master
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in deception
the inclination or practice of misleading others through lies or trickery
a crook who is a master of artifice and manipulation
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
5
as in treachery
the use of clever underhanded actions to achieve an end
he's willing to resort to artifice to get himself out of this jam
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of artifice
All of Beaton’s extravagance, artifice and pretence stemmed from him trying to become something he was never born into.
—
Hikmat Mohammed, Footwear News, 20 Oct. 2025
Conjured from the Broadway musical, itself a jazzed up version of the titular 1976 novel by Argentinian author Manuel Puig, the thought of spending over two hours with an adaptation of an adaptation may sound like a layer of artifice too deep to endure.
—Blythe Marks, Them., 17 Oct. 2025
Some cast members, like Aesha, thrive on authenticity; some, like Max, acknowledge reality TV’s artifice and embrace performance.
—Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 14 Oct. 2025
But also having the artifice of the soundstage was really important.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 2 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for artifice
Hikmat Mohammed, Footwear News, 20 Oct. 2025
Conjured from the Broadway musical, itself a jazzed up version of the titular 1976 novel by Argentinian author Manuel Puig, the thought of spending over two hours with an adaptation of an adaptation may sound like a layer of artifice too deep to endure.
—Blythe Marks, Them., 17 Oct. 2025
Some cast members, like Aesha, thrive on authenticity; some, like Max, acknowledge reality TV’s artifice and embrace performance.
—Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 14 Oct. 2025
But also having the artifice of the soundstage was really important.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 2 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for artifice
Recent Examples of Synonyms for artifice
Noun
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The New York Colored American reported that some offers of short-term work for Black men — moving livestock to or from Kentucky, for example — were ruses that ended with kidnappings.—
Equal Justice Initiative,
USA Today,
6 Nov. 2025
-
Odysseus, the Ithacan warrior who is as celebrated for craftiness as Achilles is for brute strength, devises a clever ruse in which the Greeks place a giant wooden horse outside Troy’s walls and pretend to sail away.—
Elizabeth D. Samet,
Foreign Affairs,
29 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Landing a good apartment in New York City can take some cunning.—
Matthew Sedacca,
Curbed,
5 Nov. 2025
-
Coaching successfully in such conditions requires a mixture of humility and self-confidence, as well as a certain cunning.—
Dermot Corrigan,
New York Times,
31 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Investopedia defines it as a job done outside the office, typically requiring manual labor or skills in a particular trade.—
Daniel de Visé,
USA Today,
9 Nov. 2025
-
Fisher-Price 4-in-1 Activity Table Foster your little one’s motor skills with this activity table that allows babies ages 6 months and up to flip, slide, roll, spin, and press the buttons, wheels, and lights.—
Mia Huelsbeck,
PEOPLE,
8 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Don’t get too comfortable because the toxicity, lies and deception are about to return.—
Carly Thomas,
HollywoodReporter,
11 Nov. 2025
-
The 5-foot-11, 154-pound Imai throws a mix of six pitches, but is more than simply a deception specialist.—
Jon Vankin,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Tarabay leads the cast as the titular Ashur, now thriving after his treachery.—
Randall Colburn,
Entertainment Weekly,
3 Nov. 2025
-
And when the surviving crew interrogates the android Ash about his treachery, the book has him pretty much spill the space beans.—
Daniel Dockery,
Vulture,
22 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Cherki is a dying breed of player, particularly now he’s been transferred to a Premier League which has moved away from off-the-cuff dribblers and towards set-play schemes.—
Jordan Campbell,
New York Times,
8 Nov. 2025
-
Another worker operates the machine’s main controller, using a programming scheme for 3D printers called G-code to tell the printer what to build and how to build it.—
Jake Goodrick,
Sacbee.com,
8 Nov. 2025
Noun
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There is a real seriousness to the score — the scheming bad-guy music has the artfulness of Prokofiev, and even the sneaking-around cues have musical integrity and structure.—
Tim Greiving,
Vulture,
3 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Over the course of eight episodes, the show traces how mounting pressures, deceit and betrayal led to patriarch Alex Murdaugh murdering his wife, Maggie, and their son, Paul, in 2021.—
Brianne Tracy,
PEOPLE,
5 Nov. 2025
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Since the movie's release in September, the relationship between the two has soured and in the weeks leading up to the bond hearing the filmmaker in court filings accused Goudreau of deceit, financial coercion and threatening conduct.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
2 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Artifice.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/artifice. Accessed 16 Nov. 2025.
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