Thesaurus results for MACHINATIONS

machinations

noun

plural of machination

as in schemes

a secret plan for accomplishing evil or unlawful ends incredibly complicated machinations to assassinate the president that inevitably failed

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Example Sentences

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.

Recent Examples of machinations Hutton thoughtfully explores the gender dynamics of reproductive rights issues by making Val a not wholly unsympathetic middle-woman between the men in power and one of the women impacted by their machinations. — Emily McClanathan, Chicago Tribune, 6 Sep. 2026 Only the machinations of ABC/Disney and my own rogue immune system have kept me from writing recaps here on Vulture over the last 11 years. — Ali Barthwell, Vulture, 4 Sep. 2026 The Heat are expected to carry only 14 players under standard contract at the start of their season, due to their position against the hard cap created by the machinations for the acquisition of Antetokounmpo. — Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 27 Aug. 2026 Extrapolating from salacious and rumor-filled ancient sources, the novel offers an inside scoop into the machinations of the first Roman imperial family. — Literary Hub, 12 Aug. 2026 Decades out of practice, Saxberger is assailed by writer’s block and confused by the machinations of a modern-day publishing industry that wants to turn his rediscovery into a branding exercise. — Justin Chang, New Yorker, 7 Aug. 2026 His command of celebrity culture — its secrets, scandals, and machinations — was already firmly entrenched. — Shirley Halperin, Rolling Stone, 6 Aug. 2026 However, year after year, predicting Preller’s midsummer machinations has proved a largely futile endeavor. — Dennis Lin, New York Times, 30 July 2026 Kapor had a lot more to say, about blazing a trail without a map, about the machinations of markets, and about the opportunities that the world is exploring now. — John Werner, Forbes.com, 29 July 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for machinations

Noun

The Eagles are shifting away from their usual vertical, power run-blocking schemes to a wide-zone blocking scheme, while making plays less predictable by making run and pass plays look similar.

— Brooks Kubena, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026
In an ideal world Jeff Hafley’s game plans, schemes and play calls put the Dolphins in position to win games if the execution is sharp and the turnover are kept to a minimum.

— Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 8 Sep. 2026

Definition of schemes

Noun

But like many aspects of 21st-century American life, the vaccines became a partisan point of debate as often false anti-vaccine conspiracies spread to millions of people.

— Joseph Konig, PEOPLE, 25 Aug. 2026
The result is a sprawling theory combining paranoid interpretations of current events with historical conspiracies.

— Matthew N. Hannah, The Conversation, 25 Aug. 2026

Definition of conspiracies

Noun

Other rules, such as removing shoes and the 3-1-1 liquids policy, were implemented in response to later, separate terrorist plots.

— Kathleen Wong, USA Today, 3 Sep. 2026
Food plots are great, agricultural crops are good too, but during the right window in mid-fall, nothing draws in deer like acorns.

— Colin Moore, Outdoor Life, 2 Sep. 2026

Definition of plots

Noun

The series has always moved at a deliberate pace, allowing the characters’ social battles and romantic intrigues to simmer.

— Chris Murphy, Vanity Fair, 25 Aug. 2026
Netflix announced a second melodrama last December, about the secrets and intrigues of an elite Rio de Janeiro family, created in partnership with Amaia Produções and Conspiração, with general direction by Mauro Mendonça Filho.

— John Hopewell, Variety, 25 May 2026

Definition of intrigues

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machinations

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“Machinations.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/machinations. Accessed 14 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of machinations

noun

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