1
as in to ignore
to secretly sympathize with or pretend ignorance of something improper or unlawful
the principal connived at all the school absences that were recorded on the day of the city's celebration of its Super Bowl victory
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2
as in to plot
to engage in a secret plan to accomplish evil or unlawful ends
suspects that his coworkers are conniving to get him fired
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Recent Examples of connive
Somehow, the upper hand never lingers long with Sally and Barnaby, drolly played by Gunning and Corden as a conniving Tweedledee and Tweedledum, loyal to no one and convinced their venality is justified by their father’s history of terrible parenting.
—
David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 9 Sep. 2025
This conniving force of darkness is pretty simple at a basic level.
—Vivian Tu, CNBC, 29 Aug. 2025
Feeling profoundly betrayed and abandoned by David, Rebecca’s loyalty lies with the vicious and conniving Juno, the only family she’s known for the last decade.
—Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 13 Aug. 2025
The Poetry Society becomes the Autobiographical Association, whose ridiculous members write their memoirs under the supervision of the director, a snooty character clearly conniving to use their confessions for some sort of skulduggery.
—Judith Shulevitz, The Atlantic, 10 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for connive
David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 9 Sep. 2025
This conniving force of darkness is pretty simple at a basic level.
—Vivian Tu, CNBC, 29 Aug. 2025
Feeling profoundly betrayed and abandoned by David, Rebecca’s loyalty lies with the vicious and conniving Juno, the only family she’s known for the last decade.
—Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 13 Aug. 2025
The Poetry Society becomes the Autobiographical Association, whose ridiculous members write their memoirs under the supervision of the director, a snooty character clearly conniving to use their confessions for some sort of skulduggery.
—Judith Shulevitz, The Atlantic, 10 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for connive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for connive
Verb
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The closet is probably the easiest room to ignore when things get disorganized.—
Shea Simmons,
PEOPLE,
21 Jan. 2026
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Dell is finally good at something—but as her behavior becomes riskier and a shadowy troll threatens to expose her dark past, Dell must reckon with what her digital life ignores, and what real redemption means.—
Danielle Parker,
CBS News,
20 Jan. 2026
Verb
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But in wrapping up a six-month investigation last month, independent counsel Cho’s team concluded that Yoon plotted for over a year to impose martial law to eliminate his political rivals and monopolize power.—
Hyung-Jin Kim,
Los Angeles Times,
13 Jan. 2026
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Just last month, police charged a 17-year-old in Indiana linked to TCC who was allegedly plotting to carry out an attack.—
Lauren Fichten,
CBS News,
12 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The hotel itself is a rhapsody in clean, modern design that subtly winks to the legion efforts behind it.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
9 Jan. 2026
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Maybe there’s some wink-winking, nudge-nudging going on, with one side or the other assuming an unspoken deal has been cut.—
John C. Moritz,
Austin American Statesman,
4 Jan. 2026
Verb
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After scheming his way through training by an ever-growing web of lies that included a cancer treatment, Seth tried to redeem himself by taking a bullet to save Nolan’s (Nathan Fillion) life at the cost of his lower leg, which was shattered and later amputated.—
Nellie Andreeva,
Deadline,
20 Jan. 2026
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Or simply just changing the play-calling and possibly scheme (not Ejiro Evero)?—
Mike Kaye
January 20,
Charlotte Observer,
20 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Connive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/connive. Accessed 25 Jan. 2026.
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