machination
noun
mach·i·na·tion
ˌma-kə-ˈnā-shən 
ˌma-shə-
1
: an act of machinating
2
: a scheming or crafty action or artful design intended to accomplish some usually evil end
backstage machinations … that have dominated the film industry—
Peter Bogdanovich
Peter BogdanovichExamples of machination in a Sentence
incredibly complicated machinations to assassinate the president that inevitably failed
Recent Examples on the Web
Much of the series’ pathos hinges on the growing schism between mother and son as Kanan begins to understand the horrors of Raq’s machinations and deceit (including tricking him into assassinating his biological father), leading him to try to go into business for himself.
—Robyn Bahr, The Hollywood Reporter, 7 Mar. 2025
While many successful industries celebrate greatness and individual stories, why is the architecture architecture community downplaying individuals and advocating for itself as a cog in neutral, bureaucratic machinations?
—Matt Shaw, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2025
Or machinations between military factions and civilian factions.
—Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 25 Feb. 2025
There is something oddly delightful about a movie that leans into some basic and cheesy ’80s-action-movie machinations — good guys, bad guys, innocent corporate hostages, a rouge hero — and so on.
—Tomris Laffly, Variety, 21 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for machination
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Robyn Bahr, The Hollywood Reporter, 7 Mar. 2025
While many successful industries celebrate greatness and individual stories, why is the architecture architecture community downplaying individuals and advocating for itself as a cog in neutral, bureaucratic machinations?
—Matt Shaw, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2025
Or machinations between military factions and civilian factions.
—Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 25 Feb. 2025
There is something oddly delightful about a movie that leans into some basic and cheesy ’80s-action-movie machinations — good guys, bad guys, innocent corporate hostages, a rouge hero — and so on.
—Tomris Laffly, Variety, 21 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for machination
Cite this Entry
“Machination.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/machination. Accessed 26 Mar. 2025.
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