conniving

[ kuh-nahy-ving ]

adjective

1. cooperating secretly, especially with harmful or evil intent; conspiring:

   a conniving liar and thief.

Word History and Origins

Origin of conniving¹

First recorded in 1625–50; connive ( def ) + -ing ²( def )

Example Sentences

Rife with backroom skullduggery among the conniving cardinals, as well as a Pakula-esque penchant for stairwell whisper campaigns among the power brokers, “Conclave” is less of a searching philosophy piece than it is a scandalously twisty papal potboiler.

From Los Angeles Times

They pick up on any and all evidence about human evil and conniving and explain away or ignore evidence of positive human qualities.

From Los Angeles Times

And as he’s been contriving, or conniving, to be president again since he lost the last election, and in court for much of that time, he’s a target that’s impossible to miss, hard to ignore — and not least, not hard to imitate.

From Los Angeles Times

She gets orphaned over and over again when “Daddy” vanishes on business trips, and while he’s gone, she learns all about how conniving adults can be.

From Slate

Usurping Democrats successfully schemed to swap Harry Truman into the vice presidency in the conniving national convention of 1944—so, when FDR died a few months into his fourth term, it was Truman, an ascendant vice president, who dropped atomic bombs on hundreds of thousands of unsuspecting civilians in Japan.

From Slate

Related Words

• canny
• impish
• ingenious
• intriguing
• mischievous
• roguish
• shrewd
• smart
• subtle