intrigue

C2+ Topic:General Vocabulary

US /ɪnˈtriɡ/ UK /ɪnˈtriːɡ/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

noun
secret scheming or plotting; to arouse curiosity or interest

The court seethed with intrigue over the heir's succession.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · secret scheming or... scheme plot conspiracy machination fascinate captivate interest

Opposites

bore repel

Word family

Forms intriguedintrigues

Derived forms intriguingintriguerintriguingly

Related forms intricate

Simplified etymology

Intrigue ultimately comes from Latin intricare, “to entangle or perplex.” The word developed through Italian intrigare and French before entering English in the early 17th century, initially meaning “to trick or perplex”; its sense “to arouse curiosity or interest” arose in the late 19th century under renewed French influence.

Etymology

From French intrigue, from Italian intrigo, from intrigare 'to plot, entangle', from Latin intricare 'to entangle'.

intrigue French intricare Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

General Vocabulary

External links

# intrigue

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ɪnˈtriɡ/
**IPA (UK):** /ɪnˈtriːɡ/

## Meanings
1. secret scheming or plotting; to arouse curiosity or interest

## Examples
- The court seethed with intrigue over the heir's succession.

## Synonyms
- scheme
- plot
- conspiracy
- machination
- fascinate
- captivate
- interest

## Antonyms
- bore
- repel

## Derived Forms
- intriguing
- intriguer
- intriguingly

## Related Forms
- intricate

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: intrigue
- Root: intricare

## Etymology
From French intrigue, from Italian intrigo, from intrigare 'to plot, entangle', from Latin intricare 'to entangle'.

## AI Etymology
intrigue comes from French intrigue, from Italian intrigo, from intrigare 'to plot, entangle', from Latin intricare 'to entangle'. The path is chiefly one of transmission: the word passes through the named languages and forms, with each stage preserving part of the modern shape. In present English, the noun sense is "secret scheming or plotting; to arouse curiosity or interest", so the historical development ends in a clearly identifiable modern dictionary use. The same base also appears in related forms such as intricate, and in derivatives such as intriguing, intriguer, and intriguingly. Its semantic neighborhood includes scheme, plot, conspiracy, and machination, which helps locate the modern sense without adding a separate etymological claim. The named historical forms include French intrigue and Latin intricare.

## Topics
- General Vocabulary

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