Verb: to strongly interest or fascinate someone. Noun: a secret plan, scheme, or web of plots, often in politics or romance.
From French *intriguer* “to plot,” from Italian *intricare* “to entangle,” from Latin *intricare* “to entangle, perplex.” It moved from meaning tricky plots to the feeling of fascinated curiosity they create.
Intrigue lives where curiosity and secrecy meet: something is going on, and you don’t know the whole story. That gap between what you know and what you want to know is exactly what pulls your mind deeper.
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