Standard Lemma guide

artifice

noun · verb · 7 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • /ˈɑː(ɹ)tɪfɪs/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: AA1 R T AH0 F IH0 S Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A crafty but underhanded deception.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

A trick played out as an ingenious, but artful, ruse.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

A strategic maneuver that uses some clever means to avoid detection or capture.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

A tactical move to gain advantage.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

Something made with technical skill; a contrivance.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: archaic, countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

verb

Meaning 6

To construct by means of skill or specialised art

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

7

noun

Meaning 7

a deceptive maneuver (especially to avoid capture)

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: ruse

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: maneuver, manoeuvre, tactical maneuver, tactical manoeuvre

History

Etymology

From Middle French artifice, from Latin artificium.

Across languages

Translations

42 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bulgarian: хитрина (hitrina) — crafty but underhanded deception
  • Catalan: artifici — crafty but underhanded deception
  • Chinese Mandarin: 詭計 /诡计 (guǐjì) — crafty but underhanded deception
  • Chinese Mandarin: 奸計 (jiānjì) — crafty but underhanded deception
  • Esperanto: artifiko — crafty but underhanded deception
  • French: artifice — crafty but underhanded deception
  • French: feinte — crafty but underhanded deception
  • Hungarian: megtévesztés — crafty but underhanded deception
  • Hungarian: ügyeskedés — crafty but underhanded deception
  • Hungarian: ügyesség — crafty but underhanded deception
  • Hungarian: csalafintaság — crafty but underhanded deception
  • Hungarian: ravaszkodás — crafty but underhanded deception
  • Hungarian: cselszövés — crafty but underhanded deception
  • Hungarian: rafinéria — crafty but underhanded deception
  • Hungarian: lelemény — crafty but underhanded deception
  • Hungarian: mesterkedés — crafty but underhanded deception
  • Ido: artifico — crafty but underhanded deception
  • Lithuanian: gudrybė — crafty but underhanded deception
  • Old Norse: vél — crafty but underhanded deception
  • Portuguese: artifício — crafty but underhanded deception
  • Portuguese: artimanha — crafty but underhanded deception
  • Romanian: artificiu — crafty but underhanded deception
  • Serbo-Croatian: smicalica — crafty but underhanded deception
  • Serbo-Croatian: lukavstvo — crafty but underhanded deception
  • Spanish: artificio — crafty but underhanded deception
  • Ottoman Turkish: حیله (hile) — crafty but underhanded deception
  • Ottoman Turkish: اورند (evrend) — crafty but underhanded deception
  • Chinese Mandarin: 手法 (shǒufǎ) — a trick played out as an ingenious, but artful, ruse
  • Chinese Mandarin: 計謀 /计谋 (jìmóu) — a trick played out as an ingenious, but artful, ruse
  • Chinese Mandarin: 妙計 /妙计 (miàojì) — a trick played out as an ingenious, but artful, ruse
  • Czech: lest — a trick played out as an ingenious, but artful, ruse
  • Czech: trik — a trick played out as an ingenious, but artful, ruse
  • Esperanto: artifiko — a trick played out as an ingenious, but artful, ruse
  • German: Kunstgriff — a trick played out as an ingenious, but artful, ruse
  • Hungarian: fortély — a trick played out as an ingenious, but artful, ruse
  • Hungarian: csel — a trick played out as an ingenious, but artful, ruse
  • Hungarian: praktika — a trick played out as an ingenious, but artful, ruse
  • Hungarian: cselfogás — a trick played out as an ingenious, but artful, ruse
  • Hungarian: furfang — a trick played out as an ingenious, but artful, ruse
  • Hungarian: trükk — a trick played out as an ingenious, but artful, ruse
  • Swedish: konstgrepp — a trick played out as an ingenious, but artful, ruse
  • Ottoman Turkish: صنعت (sanʼat, zanʼat) — a trick played out as an ingenious, but artful, ruse