accomplice

accomplice

English

Etymology

First attested in the 1580s. From Middle English accomplice, from a complice, from Old French complice (“confederate”), from Latin complicare (“fold together”). The article a became part of the word, through the influence of the word accomplish.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /əˈkɒm.plɪs/, /ə.ˈkʌm.plɪs/[1][2][3]
• (US) IPA^(key): /ə.ˈkɑm.pləs/, /ə.ˈkɑm.plɪs/

• Audio (UK)

  (file)

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Hyphenation: ac‧com‧plice

Noun

accomplice (plural accomplices)

1. (law) An associate in the commission of a crime; a participator in an offense, whether a principal or an accessory.
   • 1749, Samuel Johnson, Irene

     And thou, the curst accomplice of her treason, Declare thy message, and expect thy doom

   • 1693, Decimus Junius Juvenalis; John Dryden, transl., “[The Satires of Decimus Junius Juvenalis.] The Third Satyr”, in The Satires of Decimus Junius Juvenalis. Translated into English Verse. […] Together with the Satires of Aulus Persius Flaccus. […], London: Printed for Jacob Tonson […], OCLC 80026745:

     suspected for accomplice to the fire

2. (rare) A cooperator.
   • 1591 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The First Part of Henry the Sixt”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, OCLC 606515358, [Act V, scene ii]:

     Success unto our valiant general, And happiness to his accomplices!

Usage notes

• Followed by with or of before a person and by in or to (or sometimes of) before the crime; as, "A was an accomplice with B in the murder of C"; or, "D was an accomplice to murder".

Synonyms

• abettor, accessory, assistant, associate, confederate, coadjutor, ally, promoter; see abettor.

Derived terms

• accompliceship

Translations

associate in the commission of a crime

Arabic: شَرِيك فِي جَرِيمَة‎ m (šarīk fī jarīma) Armenian: հանցակից (hy) (hancʿakicʿ), մեղսակից (hy) (mełsakicʿ) Belarusian: саўдзе́льнік m (saŭdzjélʹnik), саўдзе́льніца f (saŭdzjélʹnica), супо́льнік m (supólʹnik), супо́льніца f (supólʹnica) Bulgarian: съуча́стник (bg) m (sǎučástnik), съуча́стничка f (sǎučástnička), съуча́стница f (sǎučástnica) Catalan: còmplice m Chinese: Mandarin: 幫兇／帮凶 (zh) (bāngxiōng) Czech: spolupachatel m, spolupachatelka f, spoluviník m, spoluviníce f, komplic m Danish: medskyldig c Dutch: medeplichtige (nl) m or f, handlanger (nl) m Esperanto: kunkulpulo, kunkulpulino Estonian: kaasosaline Finnish: osallinen (fi), rikokseen osallinen (principal or accessory); rikoksentekijä (principal); avunantaja (accessory) French: complice (fr) m or f, comparse (fr) m, compère (fr) m Georgian: თანამონაწილე (tanamonac̣ile) German: Mittäter (de) m, Mittäterin (de) f, Komplize (de) m, Komplizin (de) f Greek: συνεργός (el) m (synergós) Ancient: συνεργός m (sunergós), συνέντης m (sunéntēs) Hindi: सहापराधी m (sahāprādhī), अभिषंगी (hi) m (abhiṣaṅgī), अपराध में साझी m (aprādh mẽ sājhī), जुर्म में साथी m (jurm mẽ sāthī) Hungarian: bűnrészes (hu), bűntárs (hu), cinkos (hu) Icelandic: vitorðsmaður m Interlingua: (please verify) complice Irish: comhchoirí m Italian: complice (it) m or f, correo (it) m, correa f, basista (it) m or f Japanese: 共犯者 (きょうはんしゃ, kyōhansha), 共犯 (ja) (きょうはん, kyōhan) Kazakh: қылмыстас (qylmystas) Korean: 공범(共犯) (ko) (gongbeom), 공범자(共犯者) (gongbeomja) Kyrgyz: кылмышташ (kılmıştaş) Latin: correus m Latvian: līdzdalībnieks m Lithuanian: bendrininkas m Macedonian: соучесник m (součesnik), соучесница f (součesnica), соизвршител m (soizvršitel), соизвршителка f (soizvršitelka) Norwegian: Bokmål: medskyldig m Persian: شریک جرم‎ (šarik-e jorm), همدست‎ (fa) (hamdast) Polish: wspólnik (pl) m, wspólniczka f, współsprawca m, współsprawczyni f Portuguese: cúmplice (pt) m or f Romanian: complice (ro) m or f Russian: соуча́стник (ru) m (součástnik), соуча́стница (ru) f (součástnica), соо́бщник (ru) m (soóbščnik), соо́бщница (ru) f (soóbščnica), посо́бник (ru) m (posóbnik), посо́бница (ru) f (posóbnica), поде́льник (ru) m (podélʹnik), поде́льница (ru) m (podélʹnica), приспе́шник (ru) m (prispéšnik), приспе́шница (ru) f (prispéšnica), клевре́т (ru) (klevrét) (archaic) Serbo-Croatian: Cyrillic: суу̀чеснӣк m, суу̀чесница f, сау̀чеснӣк m, сау̀чесница f Roman: suùčesnīk (sh) m, suùčesnica (sh) f, saùčesnīk m, saùčesnica f Slovak: komplic m, spolupáchateľ m, spolupáchateľka f Slovene: sokrivec m, sokrivka f Spanish: cómplice (es) m or f Swedish: medbrottsling (sv), medskyldig c, kumpan (sv) Tagalog: kasabwat Telugu: తోడుదొంగ (te) (tōḍudoṅga) Turkish: suç ortağı Ukrainian: співуча́сник m (spivučásnyk), співуча́сниця f (spivučásnycja), спі́льник (uk) m (spílʹnyk), спі́льниця f (spílʹnycja), поплі́чник m (poplíčnyk), поплі́чниця f (poplíčnycja) Urdu: شَرِیکِ جُر٘م‎ m (śarīk-e jurm), جرم میں ساتھی‎ m (jurm mẽ sāthī) Uzbek: qatnashgan odam Vietnamese: người đồng lõa Volapük: (♂♀) kedöban, (♂) hikedöban, (♀) jikedöban Welsh: acwmplydd m

cooperator

Catalan: còmplice m or f Chinese: Mandarin: please add this translation if you can Dutch: handlanger (nl) m Finnish: apulainen (fi), apuri (fi); kätyri (fi) French: complice (fr) m or f German: Mitarbeiter (de) m, Mittäter (de) m, Partner (de) m, Handlanger (de) m, Helfer (de) m Italian: complice (it) m, collaboratore (it) m, basista (it) m, coadiuvante (it) m Japanese: please add this translation if you can Macedonian: соучесник m (součesnik), соучесница f (součesnica), соизвршител m (soizvršitel), соизвршителка f (soizvršitelka) Persian: شریک‎ (fa) (šarik) Portuguese: cúmplice (pt) m or f Russian: помо́щник (ru) m (pomóščnik), помо́щница (ru) f (pomóščnica) Spanish: cómplice (es) m or f, fautor (es) m Swedish: medhjälpare (sv) c

References

1. The Chambers Dictionary, 9th Ed., 2003
2. “accomplice”, in Collins English Dictionary.
3. “accomplice”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.