complicitous
Meaning
involved with others in an activity that is unlawful or morally wrong.
Structure
Usage
the court found the accountant complicitous in the fraud scheme.
by remaining silent, she felt complicitous in the injustice.
he was accused of being complicitous with the corrupt officials.
Etymology
the word 'complicitous' is a modern english formation built upon the older noun 'complicity'. its core, the latin verb plicare, meaning "to fold", gave rise to a figurative sense of being entangled or involved. the prefix 'com-' intensifies this notion of being folded or woven together with others. thus, the literal sense of "folded together" evolved into the modern abstract meaning of being jointly involved, especially in a wrongful act. the suffix '-ous' then converts this state into an adjectival form, characterizing someone as being full of such shared involvement.
Analysis
com: latin origin, a prefix meaning "together, with". plicit: from latin plicare (to fold), a bound root appearing in english as -plicit. ous: latin suffix -osus, forming adjectives meaning "full of, characterized by".