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artifice

trick, artifice

noun ar-tee-FEES Rare
Arts & Culture Performance

Origin: Latin artificium (skill, craft) from ars (art) + facere (to make)

Also means

firework (in plural: feux d'artifice)

Usage Note

Artifice on its own means a clever trick or contrivance. However, it is most commonly encountered in the fixed phrase feux d'artifice (fireworks) — literally 'fires of artifice'. The plural artifices can refer to rhetorical tricks or stage effects. The adjective artificiel (artificial) shares the same root.

Examples

"Les feux d'artifice ont illuminé le ciel."

Natural Translation

The fireworks lit up the sky.

Literal Translation

The fires of artifice illuminated the sky.

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