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n. 1. a. Deception or trickery: The purchaser believed that the product was new only by artifice of the seller. b. Something contrived or made up to achieve an end, especially by deceiving; a stratagem or ruse: "From the beginning, 'compassionate conservatism' was an artifice designed to mask Bush's conservatism from an electorate that did not want a sharp rightward turn" (Jonathan Chait). See Synonyms at wile. 2. a. Cleverness or ingenuity in making or doing something; art or skill: "Literary artifice is the only means that a writer has at his disposal. How else can he convey his impression of life?" (Harry Levin). b. An artistic device or convention: artifices such as conceits and puns. [French, from Old French, craftsmanship, from Latin artificium, from artifex, artific-, craftsman : ars, art-, art; see ART1 + -fex, maker; see dhē- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.] |
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