complicity

noun

kəm-ˈpli-s(ə-)tē How to pronounce complicity (audio)
Definition of complicitynext
as in conspiracy
a secret agreement or cooperation between two parties for an illegal or dishonest purpose the two major auction houses acting in complicity to drive up the prices of art works

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 complicity Yorgen Fenech, 44, was charged with complicity in her killing and criminal association. — Reuters, NBC news, 2 July 2026 And in 2024, a Paris court sentenced three high-ranking Syrian officials in absentia to life in prison for complicity in war crimes. — ABC News, 15 June 2026 In 2025, two Centennial nursing home staffers were arrested and charged with criminal negligence, complicity, and abusing an at-risk adult after allegedly covering up details about how a 92-year-old woman with dementia in their care suffered a broken leg. — Sponsored Content, Denver Post, 9 June 2026 The information, which Daniel was hired to protect but now wants to disclose, is footage providing conclusive evidence of the arrival of aliens on Earth, in 1947, and of a seventy-nine-year coverup, with government complicity, by a company called WARDEX, headed by Noah Scanlon (Colin Firth). — Richard Brody, New Yorker, 16 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for complicity
Recent Examples of Synonyms for complicity
  1. conspiracy
  2. collusion
  3. connivance
Noun
  • Former Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy in federal court during an afternoon hearing in the more than 20-month-long corruption case.
    — Natalie Neysa Alund, USA Today, 6 July 2026
  • After a chance meeting saving the life of a reporter, Dez stumbles across a vast conspiracy and now must stop the forces intent on keeping their secrets safe.
    — Anthony D'Alessandro, Deadline, 6 July 2026
Definition of conspiracy
Noun
  • Special counsel Robert Mueller ended up charging 34 Russian nationals, but found no collusion between them and the president’s campaign staffers.
    — Jay Weaver, Miami Herald, 2 July 2026
  • Players are expected to view these proposals as a legal form of collusion, reminiscent of the 1980s, signaling a potentially prolonged labor dispute.
    — Dan Freedman, Forbes.com, 1 July 2026
Definition of collusion
Noun
  • But widespread disgust with the mayor’s mendacity and the connivance of eight City Council members is changing the political landscape.
    — U T Readers, San Diego Union-Tribune, 2 Dec. 2025
  • Or secretly despise his own connivance?
    — Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 18 Sep. 2025
Definition of connivance

Browse Nearby Words

complicities
complicity
complied
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Cite this Entry

“Complicity.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/complicity. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on complicity

Nglish: Translation of complicity for Spanish Speakers

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