1
as in winking
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in plotting
to engage in a secret plan to accomplish evil or unlawful ends
suspects that his coworkers are conniving to get him fired
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in connivance
Related Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of conniving
Judy Berman, Time, 10 Sep. 2025
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
Each episode was guaranteed to feature a conniving scheme, a shocking betrayal, and some steamy-for-its-time smooching.
—Jordan Hoffman, Entertainment Weekly, 7 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
Noun
Through Laura’s protective eyes, this striver who has gotten her claws into Daniel is conniving, hypersexual, possibly a thief, definitely a liar.
—Judy Berman, Time, 10 Sep. 2025
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
Each episode was guaranteed to feature a conniving scheme, a shocking betrayal, and some steamy-for-its-time smooching.
—Jordan Hoffman, Entertainment Weekly, 7 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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for conniving
Verb
-
Scruffy City is a moniker the place holds with equal parts pride and winking good humor.—
Caroline Rogers,
Southern Living,
31 Aug. 2025
-
And these aren’t just winking cameos meant to elicit knowing nods; Rogen and Goldberg turn many of them into genuinely funny performances.—
Nicholas Quah,
Vulture,
16 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Still, no reason to do this to Kyle, who is just only recovering from his self-destructive spiral and who has no idea that his friend is plotting to steal his girl again.—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
9 Sep. 2025
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Its director, and franchise mastermind, Rian Johnson has proven himself a master of the whodunnit form with these films, showing a knack for Agatha Christie puzzle-plotting that, well, the actual adapters of Christie haven’t shown in recent years.—
Christian Blauvelt,
IndieWire,
8 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
In addition, senior executives could be held personally liable when offences involve their consent, connivance or neglect.—
Jamie Hailstone,
Forbes.com,
29 May 2025
-
The arrests were part of wide-ranging Establishment attacks on the new generation of pop stars in Britain at the time, done through connivance with informers and a hostile conservative media.—
Bill Wyman,
Vulture,
30 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
But being cautious doesn’t mean ignoring the risks.—
Matt Emma,
USA Today,
10 Sep. 2025
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Jeremiah has been ignoring Conrad’s texts, including a recent message wishing him a Happy Thanksgiving.—
Monica Mercuri,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
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
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Oliver Assayas’ topical drama The Wizard of the Kremlin, revolving around a scheming Russian spin doctor who smooths Vladimir Putin’s ascent to power in the 1990s, world premiered in Venice this afternoon.—
Andreas Wiseman,
Deadline,
31 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Droney found there was no collusion, saying league officials presenting economic information to owners is not indicative of collusion.—
Michael McCann,
Sportico.com,
2 Sep. 2025
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In the United Kingdom, regulators warned that AI systems used in energy markets could unintentionally enable tacit collusion between suppliers.—
Gopinath Kathiresan,
Forbes.com,
29 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Leni Riefenstahl, although briefly kept under house arrest by French occupation forces and tried four times by denazification courts, was never formally convicted of complicity in the crimes of the Nazis.—
Daniel Jonah Wolpert,
NPR,
8 Sep. 2025
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His complicity with the know-how behind making clothes has been a defining feature of his career, leading him to Italy, his business partners, and the factory in Concordia, Italy, that turns out his signature label.—
Miles Socha,
Footwear News,
4 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Seeking professional guidance early is key so that strategies can be examined and coordinated effectively.—
Virginia La Torre Jeker,
Forbes.com,
9 Sep. 2025
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Wasserman, the committee's chairman, directed the council to suggest a new distribution strategy for the committee to review in December.—
Claudia Levens,
jsonline.com,
8 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Conniving.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/conniving. Accessed 14 Sep. 2025.
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