complicity

noun

com·​plic·​i·​ty kəm-ˈpli-s(ə-)tē 

plural complicities

1

: association or participation in or as if in a wrongful act

arrested for complicity in the crime

2

: an instance of complicity

The two share a complicity she calls fraternal.

—Joan Dupont

Synonyms

• collusion
• connivance
• conspiracy

Examples of complicity in a Sentence

There's no proof of her complicity in the murder.

He acted with his brother's complicity.

Recent Examples on the Web

All the same elements are there: the whirlwind of fabrications, the social media frenzies, the distracting effects on Congress and the White House — not to mention the complicity of the news media. —Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 20 Sep. 2024

Fake casualty numbers were immediately announced by Hamas, to be instantly and unquestioningly spread by journalists whose credulity verged on complicity. —Jeffrey Blehar, National Review, 18 Sep. 2024

Iran's mission to the United Nations accused the U.S. of complicity in the attack, asserting that the U.S. controls Iraqi airspace. —Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 27 Oct. 2024

Finn, a pop culture fanatic, says Skye's journey was inspired by public complicity in the stories of tragic pop stars like Amy Winehouse, Whitney Houston, and Britney Spears. —EW.com, 18 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French complicité, borrowed from New Latin complicitāt-, complicitās, formed from Late Latin complic-, complex "fellow-participant, partner, accomplice" and Latin -itāt-, -itās -ity, probably after Late Latin duplicitās duplicity — more at complice

Note: The formation of the word is peculiar in that Latin -itāt-, -itās, along with its descendants and borrowings, is rarely added to nouns. Outside of the dictionaries of Thomas Blount and Elisha Coles, complicity is rare to non-existent in English text before the later eighteenth century, when its adoption was probably stimulated by French complicité.

First Known Use

circa 1656, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

complicity

noun

com·​plic·​i·​ty kəm-ˈplis-ət-ē 

plural complicities

: association or participation in a wrongful act