WILY Synonyms: 100 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How is the word 'wily' distinct from other similar adjectives?

Some common synonyms of wily are artful , crafty , cunning , foxy , slick , sly , and tricky . While all these words mean "attaining or seeking to attain one's ends by guileful or devious means," wily implies skill and deception in maneuvering. // the wily fugitive escaped the posse

Q: When is it sensible to use 'artful' instead of 'wily'?

The words artful and wily are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, artful implies indirectness in dealing and often connotes sophistication or cleverness. // elicited the information by artful questioning

Q: When might 'crafty' be a better fit than 'wily'?

The words crafty and wily can be used in similar contexts, but crafty implies cleverness and subtlety of method. // a crafty lefthander

Q: When would 'cunning' be a good substitute for 'wily'?

The meanings of cunning and wily largely overlap; however, cunning suggests the inventive use of sometimes limited intelligence in overreaching or circumventing. // the cunning fox avoided the trap

Q: Where would 'foxy' be a reasonable alternative to 'wily'?

While in some cases nearly identical to wily , foxy implies a shrewd and wary craftiness usually involving devious dealing. // a foxy publicity man planting stories

Q: When can 'slick' be used instead of 'wily'?

While the synonyms slick and wily are close in meaning, slick emphasizes smoothness and guile. // slick operators selling time-sharing

Q: When is 'sly' a more appropriate choice than 'wily'?

In some situations, the words sly and wily are roughly equivalent. However, sly implies furtiveness, lack of candor, and skill in concealing one's aims and methods. // a sly corporate raider

Q: In what contexts can 'tricky' take the place of 'wily'?

The synonyms tricky and wily are sometimes interchangeable, but tricky is more likely to suggest shiftiness and unreliability than skill in deception and maneuvering. // a tricky political operative

wily

adjective

ˈwī-lē

Definition of wily next

as in cunning

clever at attaining one's ends by indirect and often deceptive means a wily judge of character, she takes advantage of car buyers' insecurities to sell them a bigger machine than they really need

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How is the word wily distinct from other similar adjectives?

Some common synonyms of wily are artful, crafty, cunning, foxy, slick, sly, and tricky. While all these words mean "attaining or seeking to attain one's ends by guileful or devious means," wily implies skill and deception in maneuvering.

the wily fugitive escaped the posse

When is it sensible to use artful instead of wily?

The words artful and wily are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, artful implies indirectness in dealing and often connotes sophistication or cleverness.

elicited the information by artful questioning

When might crafty be a better fit than wily?

The words crafty and wily can be used in similar contexts, but crafty implies cleverness and subtlety of method.

a crafty lefthander

When would cunning be a good substitute for wily?

The meanings of cunning and wily largely overlap; however, cunning suggests the inventive use of sometimes limited intelligence in overreaching or circumventing.

the cunning fox avoided the trap

Where would foxy be a reasonable alternative to wily?

While in some cases nearly identical to wily, foxy implies a shrewd and wary craftiness usually involving devious dealing.

a foxy publicity man planting stories

When can slick be used instead of wily?

While the synonyms slick and wily are close in meaning, slick emphasizes smoothness and guile.

slick operators selling time-sharing

When is sly a more appropriate choice than wily?

In some situations, the words sly and wily are roughly equivalent. However, sly implies furtiveness, lack of candor, and skill in concealing one's aims and methods.

a sly corporate raider

In what contexts can tricky take the place of wily?

The synonyms tricky and wily are sometimes interchangeable, but tricky is more likely to suggest shiftiness and unreliability than skill in deception and maneuvering.

a tricky political operative

Examples of wily in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web As the Israel-Gaza war grinds on, the political jockeying in Israel is growing more intense, testing the survival skills of the wily but increasingly embattled Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. —

David Ignatius, Washington Post, 27 June 2024 If the entire enterprise were pitched in a different tone—more frenetic, more openly comic, wily, or satirical—this might not matter. —

Sara Holdren, Vulture, 11 Feb. 2024 One way to portray Milton is as a writer who entrusted his daughters with 11,000 intricate lines of his epic poem about Adam and Eve’s temptation in the Garden of Eden and the triumph of wily Satan. —

Hillary Kelly, The Atlantic, 10 Aug. 2024 Eventually another officer comes to help and the two are able to trap the wily reptile in a pool cleaning net. —

Saman Shafiq, USA TODAY, 7 Aug. 2024 See all Example Sentences for wily

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'wily.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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“Wily.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wily. Accessed 1 Oct. 2024.

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Last Updated: 15 Sep 2024 - Updated example sentences

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