verb
conspire
kuhn-SPEYE-uh
verb
1
To plan something harmful or illegal secretly with others.
"They were accused of conspiring to overthrow the government."
"Two employees conspired to steal company funds."
2
To combine or work together to bring about a particular outcome, often used of circumstances rather than people.
"Bad weather and poor planning conspired to ruin the trip."
How to Use Conspire
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishTo secretly plan something with others, or for several factors to combine against you.
Common pairings
conspire against
conspire to
Word Forms
conspired past tense, conspires singular
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Etymology
From Old French conspirer, from Latin conspirare — con- ("together") plus spirare ("to breathe"), suggesting people "breathing as one."