1
Core action
Plan or act secretly with others, especially to commit an unlawful, harmful, or deceptive act.
Example
Officials conspired to hide the payments.
conspire
/kənˈspaɪər/ · kun-SPYREverb
Plan or act secretly with others, especially to commit an unlawful, harmful, or deceptive act.
Use conspire to express this relationship precisely: plan or act secretly with others, especially to commit an unlawful, harmful, or deceptive act.
What conspire Really Means
The word becomes easier to use when its closely related senses are separated and compared.
2
Common construction
Use this expression in its normal grammatical frame so the relationship between the surrounding ideas remains explicit.
Example
The rivals allegedly conspired against the elected leader.
3
Reasoning effect
It tells the reader how to interpret the timing, scope, evidence, contrast, condition, or consequence in the statement.
Example
Several companies conspired to fix prices.
Use conspire Naturally
Notice how the surrounding noun or clause reveals the exact shade of meaning.
Officials conspired to hide the payments.
The rivals allegedly conspired against the elected leader.
Several companies conspired to fix prices.
Precision Matters
Conspire overlaps with several common words, but each carries a different emphasis.
conspire
vs.Means plan or act secretly with others, especially to commit an unlawful, harmful, or deceptive act.
disclose
Means reveal or make information known, especially information previously hidden or private.
conspire
vs.Means plan or act secretly with others, especially to commit an unlawful, harmful, or deceptive act.
advocate
Means publicly support, recommend, or argue in favour of a cause, policy, or course of action.
conspire
vs.Means plan or act secretly with others, especially to commit an unlawful, harmful, or deceptive act.
arbitrate
Means act as a neutral authority to hear a dispute and make or facilitate a binding decision.
conspire
vs.Means plan or act secretly with others, especially to commit an unlawful, harmful, or deceptive act.
chicanery
Means deception, trickery, or dishonest manipulation used to gain an advantage.
Test conspire in Context
They cooperate in secret to commit wrongdoing.
1
The executives appeared to ___ with one another to destroy records before the audit.