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| con·trive [ kən trv ] (past and past participle con·trived, present participle con·triv·ing, 3rd person present singular con·trives) |
verb |
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| Definition: |
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1. transitive and intransitive verb do something creatively: to accomplish something by being clever and creative
  She contrived a meeting between the warring factions.
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2. transitive verb make something ingenious: to make something in a skillful or ingenious way
A tree house had been contrived from bits of scrap.
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3. transitive verb manage to do something: to accomplish something difficult or unexpected
She somehow contrived to be both an effective and a well-liked teacher.
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4. transitive and intransitive verb plot: to formulate clever or deceitful schemes
The gang contrived a way to hack into the main computer system.
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| [13th century. Via Old French contro(u)ver "invent" < medieval Latin contropare "compare" < Latin tropus "turn, manner" < Greek tropos] |
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| con·triv·a·ble adjective |
| con·triv·er noun |
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