complicity
Americannoun
plural
complicitiesnoun
-
the fact or condition of being an accomplice, esp in a criminal act
-
a less common word for complexity
Other Word Forms
- complicitous adjective
- noncomplicity noun
Etymology
Origin of complicity
1650–60; < Late Latin complic-, stem of complex complice + -ity
Explanation
Complicity is involvement in a wrongful act — like when you drove your newly-turned-vegetarian friend to a fast food joint so that she could scarf down a hamburger. Complicity refers to the act of helping someone else behave inappropriately or illegally. If you find yourself accused of complicity, it's often helpful to show that you were unaware of the other person's intentions. In the case of the trip to the fast food restaurant, that's going to be hard to prove. You'll probably be scorned for being an accomplice, or someone who is complicit, in your friend's shameful act.
Vocabulary lists containing complicity
Animal Farm
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The Things They Carried
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Boots on the Ground: America's War in Vietnam
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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.
The US State Department said last year that "official complicity, including at senior levels, inhibited effective law enforcement action against trafficking crimes" in Cambodia.
From Barron's • Apr. 3, 2026
Prosecutors on Thursday filed preliminary charges of complicity in murder against Jacques-Elie Favrot, a 25-year-old parliamentary assistant to Raphaël Arnault, a lawmaker with France Unbowed.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 21, 2026
In the courtroom, Ms Pelicot and her family sat through nearly four months of veiled insinuations and open accusations of complicity from both the defendants and their lawyers.
From BBC • Feb. 14, 2026
Additional legislative measures are necessary to prevent complicity and maintain public trust in local institutions.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 14, 2026
The only thing that kept Ethel from turning her in, Cora decided, was complicity.
From "The Underground Railroad: A Novel" by Colson Whitehead
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
