stratagem
Americannoun
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a plan, scheme, or trick for surprising or deceiving an enemy.
-
any artifice, ruse, or trick devised or used to attain a goal or to gain an advantage over an adversary or competitor.
business stratagems.
- Synonyms:
- contrivance, maneuver, device, intrigue, deception
noun
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012Related Words
See trick.
Other Word Forms
- stratagemical adjective
- stratagemically adverb
Etymology
Origin of stratagem
1480–90; (< Middle French stratageme ) < Italian stratagemma war ruse < Latin stratēgēma < Greek stratḗgēma instance of generalship, derivative of stratēgeîn to be in command, derivative of stratēgós military commander ( strategy )
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 competitors are in a trancelike state, building a stratagem.
From Los Angeles Times
There are discussions among the monsters about feelings and how it’s OK to have them, even the sad and bad ones, along with some simple stratagems for dealing with them.
From Los Angeles Times
Will Toranaga let his old friend kill himself in order to perpetuate what might be a carefully constructed stratagem?
From Los Angeles Times
Dr. Timothy Pylko, a psychiatrist who has worked with Lucas, described some stratagems that interventionists use to persuade people with mental illness to accept treatment as “theater.”
From Los Angeles Times
Western governments should intensify their scrutiny of such stratagems and penalize them where possible.
From Washington Post
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.
