To secretly cooperate with someone to do something wrong; to deliberately overlook wrongdoing.
From Latin 'connivere' (to wink at, close one's eyes to), combining 'con-' (together) and possibly 'nivere,' related to closing eyes. The word entered English in the 1600s.
When you 'connive,' you're metaphorically winking at someone's bad behavior—the Latin image of closing your eyes to wrongdoing perfectly captures the meaning even 400 years later!
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