connive
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
It stars Brian Cox as the Roy family patriarch and Jeremy Strong as one of his children, who connive to succeed their father as the company’s leader.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 23, 2023
Actually, she doesn't and she will manipulate, exploit and connive anyone without giving it a second thought if it serves her best interests.
From Salon ● Aug. 17, 2022
Anaheim has no such duty, and the First Amendment has no exemption allowing communities to connive at impeding speech that does not “reflect” the community’s values.
From Washington Post ● Jul. 21, 2021
Their claims have been amplified in recent weeks, as the “Varsity Blues” college admissions scandal revealed how well-off families connive to get kids into selective colleges.
From Slate ● Apr. 3, 2019
Can we with any proper sense of propriety and right connive at falsehood and uphold and strengthen it by our silence and cowardly negligence in failing to expose it?
From The Eliminator; or, Skeleton Keys to Sacerdotal Secrets by Richard B. Westbrook
It’s a con-artist film — poor family connives its way into jobs serving a younger, wealthy quartet — and the con rides an elevator from comically to tragically desperate.
From New York Times ● Jan. 3, 2020
Secretly, though, he dresses up as a friar and connives behind the scenes to thwart Angelo's decisions and to save Claudio.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2017
“The trade connives at its own irrelevance. This lifestyle stuff, the preponderance of comment over disclosure. If we aren’t telling people things that make them go, ‘Crikey’, what’s the point?”
From The Guardian ● Oct. 15, 2016
To wrap things up: House connives to get Park to disobey an order he knows is wrong so that she will learn to stand up for herself.
From Time ● Nov. 1, 2011
A government which connives at that cannot be a government that is waging war really in earnest.
From Stand Up, Ye Dead by Norman Maclean
Murdaugh’s lawyers contend that Hill connived to have a juror removed—the so-called Egg Lady—because Hill feared she wasn’t inclined to convict.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 24, 2026
It all began with a truly terrible day for Rhaenyra, who early on learned that her father had died and that her former best friend had connived to steal the throne from her.
From New York Times ● Oct. 23, 2022
But for years she waylaid me on the street to complain and raised that incident at meetings to prove the editors connived with the paid Coop staff to prevent pro-democracy voices from being heard.
From Salon ● Apr. 23, 2022
In closing arguments to the jury, Freedman said Wright schemed and connived to “steal from his dead best friend with forgery and lies.”
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 6, 2021
Bono had, I ascertained, connived to secrete them when we had removed to this house from the town; having no use for them upon his exile, he had left them for me.
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume I: The Pox Party" by M.T. Anderson
![]()
The couple's daughter, Athena, who appeared via video-link from the US, told the court her father was a "jealous, conniving, narcissistic villain".
From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026
SantaCon’s conniving leader gives New Yorkers another reason to hate the yearly bar crawl.
From Slate ● Apr. 18, 2026
At a Saturday briefing for high ranking military officers first reported by the Journal, Gen. Zhang was accused of everything from conniving at corruption with family members to spilling nuclear secrets to the U.S.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 26, 2026
"Marty Supreme," starring Oscars frontrunner Timothee Chalamet as a conniving 1950s table tennis player with big dreams, finished in fifth place at $6.7 million.
From Barron's ● Jan. 18, 2026
Your kindness may be meanness now, and your bleak honesty fretful and conniving.
From "East of Eden" by John Steinbeck
![]()
Vocabulary lists containing connive
300 Most Difficult "SAT" Words
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Advanced English Words
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
"The Censors," Vocabulary from the short story
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!