mastermind
- n. 主谋, 策划者
- v. 策划, 主使
- Definition
- n. a very clever person who plans and directs a complicated scheme
- v. to plan and direct a complicated scheme or project
- Example
- Police believe he was the mastermind behind the bank robbery.
- 警方认为他是这起银行抢劫案的幕后主谋。
Synonyms & Differences 近义词辨析
Compared meaning: to secretly plan and bring about something (verb).
比较义项：策划、暗中促成（某结果或阴谋）（动词）。
- engineer
As a verb, 'engineer' means to bring about a result through clever or secret manipulation; it focuses on the outcome achieved, not on leading a team, and need not be criminal.
作动词时，engineer 指通过巧妙或暗中的手段促成某个结果，强调所达成的结果本身，不一定涉及指挥团队，也不一定是犯罪行为。
She quietly engineered his resignation by leaking the report to the board.
她悄悄地把那份报告透露给董事会，从而促成了他的辞职。
- mastermind 本词
As a verb, 'mastermind' means to be the chief planner and director behind an elaborate, usually criminal, scheme, emphasizing intellectual leadership over the whole operation.
作动词时，mastermind 指成为一项复杂行动（通常是犯罪活动）背后的主要策划者和指挥者，强调对整个行动的智力主导地位。
Detectives discovered that a former employee had masterminded the heist, recruiting and directing the whole crew.
侦探发现，一名前员工是这起盗窃案的主谋，他招募并指挥了整个团伙。
As verbs, engineer and mastermind both mean to plan and secretly bring about a result. Engineer focuses on the outcome achieved through clever or hidden means. Mastermind means being the chief planner behind a criminal scheme. Engineer's noun meaning is not compared here.
这两个词都表示“策划”某事，但 mastermind 强调自己是复杂行动（通常是犯罪活动）背后的主脑，负责统筹和指挥全局；engineer 则更侧重通过巧妙或暗中的手段促成某个具体结果，不一定涉及指挥他人，也不一定是犯罪行为。这里不比较 engineer 作名词表示“工程师”的义项。