artifice

Plural: artifices

Noun

• A clever or cunning device used to trick or deceive.
• a deceptive maneuver (especially to avoid capture)
• A crafty but underhanded deception.
• A trick played out as an ingenious, but artful, ruse.
• A strategic maneuver that uses some clever means to avoid detection or capture.
• A tactical move to gain advantage.
• Something made with technical skill; a contrivance.

Verb

• To construct by means of skill or specialised art

Examples

• His play seemed weak, but it was a clever artifice to set up a bingo.

Synonyms

ruse

Related Words

artificial