1
as in devises
to create or think of by clever use of the imagination
contrived abstract metal sculptures using old household utensils
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in plots
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
3
as in negotiates
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
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for contrives
Verb
-
No one wants to give up on Erica, especially Uhura, who devises a plan to send another shuttle through the wormhole to rescue Erica.—
Keith Phipps,
Vulture,
4 Sep. 2025 -
Mary’s enterprising sister Edith (Laura Carmichael) devises a plan to invite Coward, in whose show their friend Guy Dexter (Dominic West), now secretly in a relationship with their former servant Thomas (Robert James-Collier), is appearing.—
Frank Scheck,
HollywoodReporter,
3 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
However, the game rights change is contingent on the larger ESPN-NFL deal passing Department of Justice review, which seems increasingly unlikely to come before the NFL plots its 2026 calendar.—
Jacob Feldman,
Sportico.com,
29 Sep. 2025
-
LaBeouf plays a character named Clodio Pulcher, who plots against Cesar.—
Tommy McArdle,
PEOPLE,
16 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Jonas negotiates the coffee and doughnut freebie in a fun video posted on Instagram and TikTok.—
Mike Snider,
USA Today,
24 Sep. 2025
-
Faulí now runs a team of eleven architects, and also negotiates the politics of a project that has numerous stakeholders.—
D. T. Max,
New Yorker,
15 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Lockjaw, obsessed with everything about Perfidia, concocts a reason to send authorities into the town where Bob and Willa are living.—
Bill Goodykoontz,
AZCentral.com,
24 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Matthew quickly schemes his way into Oliver’s orbit after that first performance, impressing and rankling the group of lackeys in his entourage at the same time.—
Eric Torres,
Pitchfork,
27 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
But after the app arranges the list, parents are still responsible for completing it.—
Miranda Rake,
The Atlantic,
23 Sep. 2025
-
The Chronological Border arranges the beds in chronological order from the 16th to the 20th century.—
Jeanine Barone,
Forbes.com,
8 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
And recently, many of these voices have declared that the day of reckoning is near, telling government officials that whichever country invents AGI first will gain enormous geopolitical advantages.—
Michael C. Horowitz,
Foreign Affairs,
26 Sep. 2025
-
Once concentration becomes too high, the ingenuity of entrepreneurs and developers invents a new approach to reverse it.—
Christian Catalini,
Forbes.com,
12 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Complicating matters is the insidious Host character (voiced by Len Cunningham’s father, Liam Cunningham), who manipulates the players’ reality.—
Jennifer Maas,
Variety,
2 Oct. 2025
-
All of this is possible because hackers use a tactic called SEO poisoning, which manipulates Google's search results so their fake websites appear near the top.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
29 Sep. 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Cite this Entry
“Contrives.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/contrives. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share