conspiracy
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Related to conspiracy: conspiracy theory
con·spir·a·cy
(kən-spîr′ə-sē)n. pl. con·spir·a·cies
1. An agreement to perform together an illegal, wrongful, or subversive act.
2. A group of conspirators.
3. Law An agreement between two or more persons to commit a crime or accomplish a legal purpose through illegal action.
4. A joining or acting together, as if by sinister design: a conspiracy of wind and tide that devastated coastal areas.
[Middle English conspiracie, from Anglo-Norman, probably alteration of Old French conspiration, from Latin cōnspīrātiō, cōnspīrātiōn-, from cōnspīrātus, past participle of cōnspīrāre, to conspire; see conspire.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
conspiracy
(kənˈspɪrəsɪ)n, pl -cies
1. a secret plan or agreement to carry out an illegal or harmful act, esp with political motivation; plot
2. the act of making such plans in secret
conˈspirator n
conspiratorial, conˈspiratory adj
conˌspiraˈtorially adv
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
con•spir•a•cy
(kənˈspɪr ə si)n., pl. -cies.
1. the act of conspiring.
2. a plan or agreement formulated, esp. in secret, by two or more persons to commit an unlawful, harmful, or treacherous act.
3. a group of persons for a secret, unlawful, or evil purpose.
con•spir′a•tive, adj.
con•spir`a•to′ri•al (-ˈtɔr i əl, -ˈtoʊr-) con•spir′a•to`ry, adj.
con•spir`a•to′ri•al•ly, adv.
syn: conspiracy, plot, intrigue, cabal refer to surreptitious or covert schemes to accomplish some end, most often an illegal or evil one. A conspiracy usu. describes a treacherous or illicit plan formulated in secret by a group of persons: a conspiracy to control prices; a conspiracy of silence. A plot is a carefully planned secret scheme formulated by one or more persons: a plot to seize control of a company. An intrigue usu. involves duplicity and deceit aimed at achieving personal advantage: the petty intrigues of civil servants. cabal usu. refers to a scheme formulated by a small group of highly placed persons to gain control of a government: The regime was overthrown by a cabal of generals.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
Conspiracy
a body or band of conspirators, 1386.Examples: conspiracy of graces, 1580; of honesty and virtues, 1538; of things, 1691.
Dictionary of Collective Nouns and Group Terms. Copyright 2008 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
Conspiracy
hand in glove Intimately associated, on very familiar terms; closely related or connected; in cahoots, in conspiracy. Literary use of the expression dates from the late 17th century when it was properly hand and glove, a form now rarely heard. In contemporary usage the expression often carries connotations of illicit or improper association.
in cahoots In league or in partnership; in conspiracy; also to go in cahoots or cahoot with, meaning to join up with, to become partners; and go cahoots meaning to share equally. This U.S. slang expression, dating from 1829, is said to have derived from the kind of partnership that was expected of early American pioneers who shared a frontier cabin, or engaged in a joint venture. Originally, the phrase may have come from the French cahute ‘cabin, hut,’ although Dutch kajuit and German kajüte have also been suggested as possibilities.
Picturesque Expressions: A Thematic Dictionary, 1st Edition. © 1980 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Switch to new thesaurus
| Noun | 1. | conspiracy - a secret agreement between two or more people to perform an unlawful act conspiracy of silence - a conspiracy not to talk about some situation or event; "there was a conspiracy of silence about police brutality" agreement, understanding - the statement (oral or written) of an exchange of promises; "they had an agreement that they would not interfere in each other's business"; "there was an understanding between management and the workers" |
| 2. | conspiracy - a plot to carry out some harmful or illegal act (especially a political plot) plot, secret plan, game - a secret scheme to do something (especially something underhand or illegal); "they concocted a plot to discredit the governor"; "I saw through his little game from the start" Gunpowder Plot - a conspiracy in 1605 in England to blow up James I and the Houses of Parliament to avenge the persecution of Catholics in England; led by Guy Fawkes political science, politics, government - the study of government of states and other political units | |
| 3. | conspiracy - a group of conspirators banded together to achieve some harmful or illegal purpose |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
conspiracy
noun plot, scheme, intrigue, collusion, confederacy, cabal, frame-up (slang), machination, league Many people believe there was a conspiracy to kill President Kennedy in 1963.
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
conspiracy
nounA secret plan to achieve an evil or illegal end:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
مؤامرةمُؤَامَرَةمُؤامَرَه، تَآمُر
spiknutí
sammensværgelse
salaliitto
zavjeraurota
samsæri
陰謀
음모
zarota
konspiration
การวางแผนการอย่างลับๆ
âm mưu
conspiracy
[kənˈspɪrəsɪ]A. N (= plotting) → conspiración f, conjuración f; (= plot) → complot m, conjura f
B. CPD conspiracy theory N → teoría f de la conspiración
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
conspiracy
[kənˈspɪrəsi] n → conspiration f, complot ma conspiracy of silence → une conspiration du silenceconspiracy theory n → thèse f du complot
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
conspiracy
n → Verschwörung f, → Komplott nt, → Konspiration f (form); (Jur) → (strafbare) Verabredung; conspiracy to defraud → Verabredung f → zum Betrug; conspiracy to murder → Mordkomplott nt; a conspiracy of silence → ein verabredetes Schweigen; he thinks it’s all a conspiracy against him → er meint, man hätte sich gegen ihn verschworen
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
conspire
(kənˈspaiə) verb to plot or secretly make plans together. They conspired with the terrorists to overthrow the government.
conˈspiracy (-ˈspi-) – plural conˈspiracies – noun (a plan made by) conspiring. The government discovered the conspiracy in time.
conˈspirator (-ˈspi-) noun a person who conspires.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.
conspiracy
→ مُؤَامَرَة spiknutí sammensværgelse Verschwörung συνωμοσία conspiración salaliitto complot zavjera cospirazione 陰謀 음모 samenzwering sammensvergelse spisek conspiração заговор konspiration การวางแผนการอย่างลับๆ komplo âm mưu 密谋Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009