wink at

verb

To turn a blind eye to (something); to corruptly ignore (some wrongdoing); to pretend not to have seen (something); to signal one's approval of (illicit activities) while maintaining the ability to plausibly deny knowing about it; to tolerate or tacitly encourage (inappropriate, immoral or illegal behavior).

Similar
connive at
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Meanings

verbwink at (third-person singular simple present winks at, present participle winking at, simple past and past participle winked at)

present singular third person winks at · participle present winking at · participle past winked at · past winked at

  1. idiomaticTo turn a blind eye to (something); to corruptly ignore (some wrongdoing); to pretend not to have seen (something); to signal one's approval of (illicit activities) while maintaining the ability to plausibly deny knowing about it; to tolerate or tacitly encourage (inappropriate, immoral or illegal behavior).

Synonyms & antonyms

verbgive one's silent approval to

Similar
connive at
Broader
promoteadvanceboost
Also see
ignore

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Cite this entry
APA

wink at. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/wink%20at

MLA

“wink at.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/wink%20at. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “wink at,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/wink%20at.

Source: wink at on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.