Artifice
hardAHR-tuh-fis
noun
Definition
Clever or cunning devices or expedients, especially to deceive; trickery
Examples
“The con artist's success depended on elaborate artifice.”
“Behind the artifice of her smile lay genuine hostility.”
Synonyms
Antonyms
Categories
GRE Tip
Artifice is a hard-difficulty GRE word. On the GRE, you might see it paired with synonyms like "guile" or "cunning" in Sentence Equivalence questions. Look for contrast clues (however, despite, although) that signal the opposite meaning. Words like "candor".
Related GRE Words
chicanery
The use of trickery to achieve a political, financial, or legal purpose
duplicity
Deceitfulness; double-dealing
subterfuge
Deceit used to achieve one's goal; a trick
guile
Sly or cunning intelligence; craftiness in deceiving others
dissemble
To conceal one's true motives, feelings, or beliefs; to feign
equivocate
To use ambiguous language to avoid committing to a position; to be deliberately vague
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