accomplice

noun

ac·​com·​plice ə-ˈkäm-pləs How to pronounce accomplice (audio) -ˈkəm- How to pronounce accomplice (audio)
: one associated with another especially in wrongdoing
was convicted as an accomplice to murder

Examples of accomplice in a Sentence

He was convicted as an accomplice to murder. the thief and his accomplices were eventually caught and brought to justice
Recent Examples on the Web Each accomplice saboteur brings its own set of challenges. Mark Travers, Forbes, 2 Mar. 2024 In August, William Stamey Jr. of Whitesburg, Tennessee, pointed a gun at a landowner who caught him and an accomplice spotlighting and shooting deer on McKinney Chapel Road in Rogersville. Katie Hill, Outdoor Life, 29 Feb. 2024 Natalie Morales: Victor was your accomplice in this kidnapping and murder plot. Natalie Morales, CBS News, 3 Feb. 2024 Sennett died by suicide a week after her death, while Smith’s accomplice was executed for the crime in 2010. Liam Quinn, Peoplemag, 26 Jan. 2024 Other performances are less credible and nuanced, including those from the actors who play the Christian accomplices – William Oberholtzer (Mr. Kraler) and Kirsten Myers (Miep). Mitchel Benson, Sacramento Bee, 25 Jan. 2024 The victim told police that she had been seated in her vehicle when an unknown, unarmed Black male removed her from her vehicle, entered the SUV along with two accomplices and fled the scene. Chris Gardner, The Hollywood Reporter, 11 Jan. 2024 Her character was an Osage woman married to a key accomplice in the systematic assassination of the Osage people in the 1920s. Carly Thomas, The Hollywood Reporter, 25 Feb. 2024 Hopefully, your crush wasn’t also a murderous barber and you his accomplice in baking people into pies. Washington Post Staff, Washington Post, 13 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'accomplice.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Anglo-French acomplice, alteration of complice "associate" — more at complice

Note: The source of initial a(c)- is unclear. The earlier notion that a- represents fusion of the indefinite article cannot be maintained given the much earlier occurrences of the word in Anglo-French (in a 1384 petition of the Drapers guild, and in vol. 2 of the Rotuli Parliamentorum [1279-1377]). The suggestion that complice has been assimilated to accomplir, "to fulfill, etc.," (see accomplish) is not very compelling semantically.

First Known Use

1584, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of accomplice was in 1584

Dictionary Entries Near accomplice

Cite this Entry

“Accomplice.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/accomplice. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

accomplice

noun
ac·​com·​plice ə-ˈkäm-pləs How to pronounce accomplice (audio) -ˈkəm- How to pronounce accomplice (audio)
: someone associated with another in wrongdoing

Legal Definition

accomplice

noun
ac·​com·​plice ə-ˈkäm-pləs, -ˈkəm- How to pronounce accomplice (audio)
: one who intentionally and voluntarily participates with another in a crime by encouraging or assisting in the commission of the crime or by failing to prevent it though under a duty to do so
the accomplice of the burglar
an accomplice in a robbery
Etymology

alteration (from incorrect division of a complice) of complice, from Middle French, associate, from Late Latin complic- complex partner, confederate

More from Merriam-Webster on accomplice

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