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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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of connive
The actress played the conniving Abby Ewing on the CBS primetime soap opera for much of the '80s.
—
Raechal Shewfelt, Entertainment Weekly, 16 Feb. 2026
Through his conniving, Heathcliff comes to own both properties.
—Natasha O'Neill, Vanity Fair, 13 Feb. 2026
Her excellent work goes unappreciated, except when a conniving colleague, Donovan (Xavier Samuel), takes credit for it.
—Frank Scheck, HollywoodReporter, 26 Jan. 2026
The characters here, though, are nowhere near so smart as those conniving pagans and can only dream of outwitting the sophisticated folk from the mainland, coming there with their talk of cake, and comfy chairs, and their lies.
—Damon Wise, Deadline, 22 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for connive
Raechal Shewfelt, Entertainment Weekly, 16 Feb. 2026
Through his conniving, Heathcliff comes to own both properties.
—Natasha O'Neill, Vanity Fair, 13 Feb. 2026
Her excellent work goes unappreciated, except when a conniving colleague, Donovan (Xavier Samuel), takes credit for it.
—Frank Scheck, HollywoodReporter, 26 Jan. 2026
The characters here, though, are nowhere near so smart as those conniving pagans and can only dream of outwitting the sophisticated folk from the mainland, coming there with their talk of cake, and comfy chairs, and their lies.
—Damon Wise, Deadline, 22 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for connive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for connive
Verb
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Ricketts faces four primary challengers of his own, but he's mostly ignored those rivals to put more attention towards Osborn in what could be a competitive race.—
Phillip M. Bailey,
USA Today,
12 May 2026
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Common laundry habits — ignoring dryer vent buildup, leaving wet clothes in the washer, using hot water on everything and skipping the washing machine gasket — can damage appliances, ruin fabrics and even create a fire risk.—
Lauren Jarvis-Gibson,
Miami Herald,
12 May 2026
Verb
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In Albany, Jeffries was part of a group of young Black and Latino lawmakers from New York City who played pickup basketball together and plotted legislative strategy over beers at a Bonefish Grill.—
Jason Zengerle,
New Yorker,
18 May 2026
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But soon the 50-year-old character actor will be joining the DCU and plotting to conquer and collect the world as Brainiac, the villain of James Gunn’s Superman sequel Man of Tomorrow.—
Scott Roxborough,
HollywoodReporter,
17 May 2026
Verb
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Jim tests positive and, much to his horror, sees his abs winking out of existence one by one.—
Richard Lawson,
HollywoodReporter,
17 May 2026
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Two guys at the golf course are winking, and whispering, and tipping each other off.—
Jon Wertheim,
CBS News,
17 May 2026
Verb
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Fans are already scheming how this might happen — whether Kahan releases a deluxe version of The Great Divide and Bridgers appears, or something else entirely.—
Angie Martoccio,
Rolling Stone,
9 May 2026
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One word came up repeatedly in a federal courtroom in Kansas City, Kansas, on Wednesday as the government laid out its case in the racketeering conspiracy trial of former Boilermakers executives accused of scheming to steal $20 million in union funds.—
Judy L. Thomas,
Kansas City Star,
7 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Connive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/connive. Accessed 19 May. 2026.
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