It's the Word of the Day podcast for January 10th.

Today's word is collude, spelled C-O-L-L-L-U-D-E.

Collude is a verb.

To collude is to work with others secretly, especially in order to do

something illegal or dishonest. Calude is used as a synonym of the words conspire and plot.

Here's the word used. In a sentence from the L.A. Times, two lawsuits filed in April accuse hundreds of insurers of colluding to drop policyholders

and force them onto the plan, which offers limited policies that typically cost more. Colluding,

working secretly with others to do something deceitful or illegal, is not a game, but you'd never know it if you

took your cues on the meaning of collude solely from its etymology. Calude comes from the Latin verb

colludere, which in turn combines the prefix com, meaning together, and the verb ludere, meaning to play.

Ludere, in turn, comes from ludus, meaning game, play, or sport.

Ludus is also the source of the adjective ludicrous and the noun interlude.

Collude has a related noun, collusion, which carries the specific meaning,

secret agreement or cooperation. Despite their playful history, collude and collusion have always

suggested illicit trickery rather than good-natured fun. With your word of the day, I'm Peter

Sokolowski.

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