1
as in to devise
to create or think of by clever use of the imagination
contrived abstract metal sculptures using old household utensils
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to plot
to engage in a secret plan to accomplish evil or unlawful ends
the mischievous boys were always contriving and trying to pull the prank that would be the talk of the school
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in to negotiate
to plan out usually with subtle skill or care
contrived a way of planning the surprise party without their catching on to it
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Recent Examples of contrive
Even Belinda’s presence in Thailand still feels contrived to me.
—
Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 2 Mar. 2025
And the overt nod to the sinking of the Titanic feels contrived, since there is little obvious connection between the 1912 maritime disaster and the political intrigues of 17th-century Denmark.
—Houman Barekat, New York Times, 24 Feb. 2025
Back then, the weather was an easy way to contrive narrative tension for a story whose ending felt too obvious.
—Antonia Hitchens, The New Yorker, 20 Jan. 2025
Leftists can only dream of actually changing the world on the same scale with their comparatively lame and contrived performance art provocations.
—Rachel Marsden, Hartford Courant, 19 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for contrive
Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 2 Mar. 2025
And the overt nod to the sinking of the Titanic feels contrived, since there is little obvious connection between the 1912 maritime disaster and the political intrigues of 17th-century Denmark.
—Houman Barekat, New York Times, 24 Feb. 2025
Back then, the weather was an easy way to contrive narrative tension for a story whose ending felt too obvious.
—Antonia Hitchens, The New Yorker, 20 Jan. 2025
Leftists can only dream of actually changing the world on the same scale with their comparatively lame and contrived performance art provocations.
—Rachel Marsden, Hartford Courant, 19 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for contrive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for contrive
Verb
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Before the Frazier and Foreman fight was devised, former heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali was stripped of the title.—
Thomas G. Moukawsher,
Newsweek,
22 Mar. 2025
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Then again, maybe the first ASI wants to have ASI pals and therefore devises additional ASIs accordingly.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes,
21 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Less than a month into the job, Trump and the Japanese Prime Minister plotted their response to a North Korean missile launch in the open-air patio of Mar a Lago, photos of which ended up on Facebook.—
Philip Elliott,
Time,
26 Mar. 2025
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Charity workers had plotted the heights and weights of Daasanach children on World Health Organization charts—the same ones our pediatrician used to monitor my daughter’s growth—and determined that more than two-thirds of the kids were malnourished.—
Manvir Singh,
The New Yorker,
24 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Republicans see the price of negotiating with their colleagues across the aisle as too high after Schumer retreated in a fight to avert a government shutdown earlier this month.—
Ramsey Touchberry,
Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government,
26 Mar. 2025
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Under that agreement, the two sides were supposed to exploit the pause in fighting to negotiate the next stage of the deal, including a permanent cease-fire and the release of the remaining Israeli hostages.—
Gershom Gorenberg,
The Atlantic,
26 Mar. 2025
Verb
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But White Sox concessions partner Levy Restaurants has concocted a new milkshake — the Celebration Cake Shake.—
Sean Hammond,
Chicago Tribune,
19 Mar. 2025
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Born less than three months apart to devout religious families in the industrial Midwest, Prince and Jackson probably had a lot to talk about when they weren’t holed up in their Xanadu-like mansions concocting their unique blends of soul-funk-disco alchemy.—
Jordan Runtagh,
People.com,
15 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Firestone’s narrators are always scheming to leave, either arguing uselessly with administrators about the injustice of their incarceration or playing along, hoping that good behavior will get them out.—
Moira Donegan,
New Yorker,
26 Mar. 2025
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Washington, here, is the title character, a military general whose personnel choices have enraged Gyllenhaal’s scheming underling.—
Daniel D'Addario,
Variety,
24 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Fran arranged a private flight for Marcos to Buenos Aires, which was also the same flight Martina was on to meet Fran as well.—
Monica Mercuri,
Forbes.com,
28 Mar. 2025
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Following the eventful day, JGR arranged for a police escort for the return journey.—
Paul Du Quenoy,
MSNBC Newsweek,
27 Mar. 2025
Verb
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In 1973, Bob Metcalfe and David Boggs invented Ethernet and implemented the first local-area network or LAN at Xerox Parc.—
Gil Press,
Forbes.com,
30 Mar. 2025
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These three teams invented the Tables, Ladders, & Chairs matches, which are now considered classic wrestling moments.—
Ron Estes,
MSNBC Newsweek,
28 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Howard’s agent, Charles Briscoe, had conspired with Darden, which gave Howard more of a reason to believe the transactions were legitimate.—
Michael McCann,
Sportico.com,
1 Apr. 2025
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The bigger concern, though, is how all of these augmentations and enhancements seem to conspire to hide the shortcomings of BMW’s design decisions but aren’t successful in doing so.—
Bradley Iger,
ArsTechnica,
31 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Contrive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/contrive. Accessed 6 Apr. 2025.
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