as in ruses
a clever often underhanded means to achieve an end
used the artifice of saying his grandmother had died so that he could get the last seat on the plane
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of artifices
Owens was initially indicted on one count of fraudulent schemes and artifices, one count of forgery, four counts of perjury and one count of tampering with physical evidence earlier this year.
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Jenna Sundel, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for artifices
Noun
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The New York Colored American reported that some offers of short-term work for Black men — moving livestock to or from Kentucky, for example — were ruses that ended with kidnappings.—
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Many suspect a spam call and don't pick up the phone, leading foundation staff to sometimes devise ruses.—
Noun
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The 40-year-old cooks up ways to make quarterbacks miserable in his sleep, devising schemes that are meant to lure as much as they are intended to confuse.—
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More than 90 people, most with ties to the state’s Somali community, have been charged in fraud schemes targeting social services.—
Noun
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Samsung says the sensor targets users who want professional-grade imaging from mobile devices.—
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Speaking to gadgets is often faster than typing, but Amazon and Nirva also see their devices as another means to gather data that can provide insights about a user’s life, though doing so will surely raise privacy concerns.—
Noun
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There is no one organizational system that fits every family and lifestyle, but there are some tips and tricks that help.—
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So what are their go-to tricks for creating a space worth hibernating in?—
Cite this Entry
“Artifices.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/artifices. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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