# intrigue

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈɪntɹiːɡ/ · frequency rank #18,112

## Definitions
1. A complicated or clandestine plot or scheme intended to affect some purpose by secret artifice; conspiracy; stratagem.
2. The plot of a play, poem or romance; the series of complications in which a writer involves their imaginary characters.
3. Clandestine intercourse between persons; illicit intimacy; a liaison or affair.

## Etymology
Borrowed from French intrigue, from Italian intricare, from Latin intrīcō (“I entangle, perplex, embarrass”). Doublet of intricate.

## Easily confused with
- **intrigues** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/intrigue-vs-intrigues)

## Common misspellings (11)
`inntrigue`, `inrtigue`, `intirgue`, `intrgiue`, `intrigeu`, `intriggue`, `intriuge`, `intrrigue`, `inttrigue`, `itnrigue`, `nitrigue`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/intrigue