stratagem

English

Etymology

From Middle English stratageme, from Old French stratageme, from Latin strategema, from Ancient Greek στρατήγημα (stratḗgēma, “the act of a general, a piece of generalship”), from στρατηγέω (stratēgéō, “to be a general, command an army”), from στρατηγός (stratēgós, “a general, the leader or commander of an army”). See strategy.

Pronunciation

• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈstɹæt.ə.d͡ʒəm/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Noun

stratagem (countable and uncountable, plural stratagems)

1. A tactic or artifice designed to gain the upper hand, especially one involving underhanded dealings or deception.

   Near-synonyms: ploy, ruse

   • 1837, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], “A Friend at Court”, in Ethel Churchill: Or, The Two Brides. […], volume II, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, page 265:

     She will not yet be permitted to return to the Manor House: it is too convenient for 'treasons, stratagems,' &c.; and it is as well not to be put in the way of temptation: but she will be allowed perfect liberty in London.

   • 2012 March 22, Scott Tobias, AV Club, The Hunger Games‎^[1]:

     While Collins does include a love triangle, a coming-of-age story, and other YA-friendly elements in the mix, they serve as a Trojan horse to smuggle readers into a hopeless world where love becomes a stratagem and growing up is a matter of basic survival.

2. Specifically, such a tactic or artifice in military operation.
   • c. 1587–1588, [Christopher Marlowe], Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […], 2nd edition, part 1, London: […] [R. Robinson for] Richard Iones, […], published 1592, →OCLC; reprinted as Tamburlaine the Great (A Scolar Press Facsimile), Menston, Yorkshire, London: Scolar Press, 1973, →ISBN, Act I, scene ii:

     His fiery eies are fixt vpon the earth.
     As if he now deuiſ’d some Stratageme:
     Or meant to pierce Auernus darkſome vauts.
     To pull the triple headed dog from hell.

3. (uncountable) Military deception or artifice.
4. (uncountable) Cunning and artifice in general.
5. (obsolete) A violent deed.

Derived terms

• North Carolina stratagem

 

Related terms

• strategic
• strategist
• strategy

Translations

tactic

• Bulgarian: хитрина (bg) f (hitrina), уловка (bg) f (ulovka)
• Catalan: estratagema (ca) f
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 伎倆／伎俩 (gei⁶ loeng⁵), 計謀／计谋 (gai³ mau⁴), 策略 (caak³ loek⁶), 花招 (faa¹ ziu¹), 戰略／战略 (zin³ loek⁶)

  Mandarin: 伎倆／伎俩 (zh) (jìliǎng)

• Dutch: krijgslist (nl)
• Estonian: sõjakavalus, kavalus
• Finnish: petos (fi), juoni (fi), salajuoni (fi)
• French: stratagème (fr) m
• German: Kriegslist (de) f, Strategem (de) n (elevated), Stratagem n (elevated)
• Greek: στρατήγημα (el) n (stratígima)

  Ancient: στρατήγημα n (stratḗgēma)

• Hungarian: hadicsel (hu)
• Indonesian: muslihat (id), siasat (id)
• Irish: beart f
• Italian: stratagemma (it) m, tattica (it) f, schema (it) m
• Japanese: 計略 (ja) (けいりゃく, keiryaku), 謀略 (ja) (ぼうりゃく, bōryaku), 策略 (ja) (さくりゃく, sakuryaku)
• Korean: 계략(計略) (ko) (gyeryak), 계책(計策) (ko) (gyechaek)
• Latin: sūtēla f, stratēgēma n
• Maori: nuka, rauhanga
• Norwegian: list (no) c, krigslist c
• Polish: fortel (pl) m, chwyt (pl) m, zagrywka (pl) f
• Portuguese: estratagema (pt) f, maquinação (pt) f
• Russian: уло́вка (ru) f (ulóvka), хи́трость (ru) f (xítrostʹ), ухищре́ние (ru) n (uxiščrénije), стратаге́ма (ru) f (stratagéma)
• Spanish: estratagema (es) f
• Swedish: krigslist (sv) c
• Thai: ชั้นเชิง (th) (chán-chəəng)
• Turkish: harp hilesi, savaş hilesi
• Ukrainian: хитрість (xytristʹ), трюк (trjuk)

Further reading

• “stratagem”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

Old French

Etymology

From Latin strategema, from Ancient Greek στρατήγημα (stratḗgēma).

Noun

stratagem oblique singular, m (oblique plural stratagens, nominative singular stratagens, nominative plural stratagem)

1. strategy; stratagem