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contrivance

American  
[kuhn-trahy-vuhns] / kənˈtraɪ vəns /

noun

  1. something contrived; contrived; a device, especially a mechanical one.

  2. the act or manner of contriving; the faculty or power of contriving.

  3. a plan or scheme; expedient.

contrivance British  
/ kənˈtraɪvəns /

noun

  1. something contrived, esp an ingenious device; contraption

  2. the act or faculty of devising or adapting; inventive skill or ability

  3. an artificial rather than natural selection or arrangement of details, parts, etc

  4. an elaborate or deceitful plan or expedient; stratagem

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • noncontrivance noun
  • precontrivance noun

Etymology

Origin of contrivance

First recorded in 1620–30; contrive + -ance

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.