WordWeight : Weighing the Words

Pronunciation : Ar"ti*fice
Part of Speech : n.
Etymology : [L. artificium, fr. artifex artificer; ars, artis, art + facere to make: cf. F. artifice.]
Definition : 1. A handicraft; a trade; art of making. [Obs.]

2. Workmanship; a skillfully contrived work. The material universe.. in the artifice of God, the artifice of the best Mechanist. Cudworth.

3. Artful or skillful contrivance. His [Congreve's] plots were constructed without much artifice. Craik.

4. Crafty device; an artful, ingenious, or elaborate trick.

Note: [Now the usual meaning.] Those who were conscious of guilt employed numerous artifices for the purpose of averting inquiry. Macaulay.


Source : Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913