Synonyms of contrived

contrived 1 of 2

adjective

kən-ˈtrīvd 

as in strained

lacking in natural or spontaneous quality

the contrived applause of a TV studio audience that has been told when to clap

Synonyms & Similar Words

• strained
• mock
• unnatural
• false
• exaggerated
• fake
• simulated
• artificial
• mechanical
• affected
• forced
• pseudo
• assumed
• feigned
• spurious
• phony
• factitious
• bogus
• pretended
• plastic
• sham
• cute
• theatrical
• put-on
• hollow
• manufactured
• unreal
• deliberate
• calculated
• unrealistic
• fabricated
• concocted
• empty
• automatic
• insincere
• canned
• hypocritical
• labored
• hokey
• facile
• pat
• formal
• melodramatic
• stiff
• unauthentic
• conventional
• unctuous
• stylized
• wooden
• conscious
• impersonal
• premeditated
• cultivated
• histrionic
• overacted
• rigid
• mealy
• overdone
• mealymouthed
• two-faced
• artful
• studied
• cutesy
• double-dealing
• genteel
• inflexible
• simpering
• overrefined
• left-handed
• mincing
• goody-goody

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• spontaneous
• natural
• genuine
• real
• unaffected
• artless
• realistic
• true
• authentic
• bona fide
• right
• uncontrived
• unforced
• sincere
• ingenuous
• easy
• honest
• unfeigned
• smooth
• effortless
• instinctive
• unconscious
• impromptu
• extemporaneous
• impulsive
• unpretending
• unrehearsed
• unstudied
• unprompted

contrived

2 of 2

verb

past tense of contrive

1

as in concocted

to create or think of by clever use of the imagination

contrived abstract metal sculptures using old household utensils

Synonyms & Similar Words

• concocted
• devised
• constructed
• invented
• designed
• manufactured
• thought (up)
• produced
• cooked (up)
• fabricated
• came up with
• made up
• hatched
• excogitated
• conceived
• trumped up
• vamped (up)
• imagined
• envisioned
• improvised
• drummed up
• dreamed
• visualized
• coined
• envisaged
• fantasized
• daydreamed
• visioned
• extemporized
• ad-libbed
• pictured

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• copied
• duplicated
• reproduced
• mimicked
• imitated
• replicated
• cloned
• reduplicated
• copycatted

2

as in plotted

to engage in a secret plan to accomplish evil or unlawful ends

the mischievous boys were always contriving and trying to pull the prank that would be the talk of the school

Synonyms & Similar Words

• plotted
• schemed
• planned
• conspired
• connived
• intrigued
• colluded
• machinated
• engineered
• concocted
• devised
• designed
• manipulated
• compassed
• hatched
• put up
• cooked (up)
• counterplotted
• maneuvered
• brewed
• shaped
• mapped
• laid out
• framed
• jockeyed

3

as in negotiated

to plan out usually with subtle skill or care

contrived a way of planning the surprise party without their catching on to it

Synonyms & Similar Words

• negotiated
• manipulated
• engineered
• arranged
• plotted
• managed
• maneuvered
• masterminded
• framed
• concluded
• finessed
• wangled
• machinated
• finagled
• concocted
• concerted
• schemed
• worked out
• hammered out
• intrigued
• conducted
• connived
• hatched
• directed
• handled
• angled (for)
• cooked (up)
• brewed
• compassed
• commanded
• gerrymandered
• captained
• ran
• quarterbacked

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• bungled
• mangled
• butchered
• botched
• fumbled
• blew
• mishandled
• messed (up)
• muffed
• gummed (up)
• flubbed
• bobbled
• loused up

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of contrived

Adjective

There was nothing particularly novel about the show’s premise, but the scripts were refreshingly dense with jokes, prioritizing laughs over contrived drama or seasonlong relationship arcs. — Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 28 Aug. 2026

More problematic is Helaena’s suicide, which feels more contrived here. — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026

Verb

Until, of course, the final game (which was not technically the final)… when Brazil contrived to lose a 1-0 lead, and Uruguay triumphed against all odds. — Michael Cox, New York Times, 23 July 2026

The work lies in making that interface feel truthful rather than contrived. — Kate Hardcastle, Forbes.com, 26 May 2026