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From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
Stratagem \Strat"a*gem\, noun [F. stratag['e]me (cf. Sp. estratagema, It. stratagemma), L. strategema, Gr. ?, fr. ? to be leader of an army, fr. ? a general; ? an army (probably as being spread out; cf. {Stratum}) + ? to lead. See {Agent}.] An artifice or trick in war for deceiving the enemy; hence, in general, artifice; deceptive device; secret plot; evil machination.
Fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils. --Shak.
Those oft are stratagems which error seem, Nor is it Homer nods, but we that dream. --Pope.
From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:
stratagem
noun
1: a maneuver in a game or conversation [syn: {ploy}, {gambit}]
2: an elaborate or deceitful scheme contrived to deceive or evade; "his testimony was just a contrivance to throw us off the track" [syn: {contrivance}, {dodge}]
From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:
151 Moby Thesaurus words for "stratagem": action, ad hoc measure, alibi, answer, apology, art, artful dodge, artifice, bag of tricks, blind, bluff, bosey, cabal, catch, chicanery, chouse, cloak, collusion, color, complicity, complot, confederacy, connivance, conspiracy, contrivance, contriving, countermove, counterplot, coup, course of action, cover, cover story, cover-up, covin, craft, curve, curve-ball, cute trick, deceit, deep-laid plot, demarche, design, device, dirty deal, dirty trick, dodge, effort, engineering, excuse, expedient, facade, fakement, fast deal, feint, fetch, ficelle, finagling, finesse, frame-up, front, gambit, game, gimmick, gloss, googly, grift, guise, handle, hocus-pocus, improvisation, intrigue, joker, juggle, jugglery, jury-rig, jury-rigged expedient, knavery, lame excuse, last expedient, last resort, last shift, little game, locus standi, lure, machination, makeshift, maneuver, maneuvering, manipulation, mask, means, measure, move, ostensible motive, pass, pis aller, plan, play, plot, plotting, ploy, poor excuse, pretense, pretension, pretext, protestation, public motive, put-off, racket, red herring, refuge, resort, resource, rigging, ruse, scheme, schemery, scheming, screen, scurvy trick, semblance, shake-up, sham, shift, show, sleight, sleight of hand, sleight-of-hand trick, smoke screen, solution, stalking-horse, step, stopgap, strategy, stroke, stroke of policy, subterfuge, tactic, temporary expedient, trick, trickery, trump, underplot, varnish, veil, web of intrigue, wile, wily device, wire-pulling, working hypothesis, working proposition
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Definitions retrieved from local copies of the freely distributed DICT client/server software and databases. Click here for database copyright information. - KM |