wily
18
6.9
- adjective
- /ˈwaɪli/
- The detective caught the wily thief by outsmarting him with a clever plan.
- wily enemy
- more wily
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Watch on YouTubeSo craving is is really really a wily kind of thing that swims through our brain and catches us unaware.
- So craving is is really really a wily kind of thing that swims through our brain and catches us unaware.
Examples
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It is a wily politician who's able to negotiate those things in the context of an appropriations bill at a time when essentially there was money to be spent.
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The cautious but wily Confederate commander had set a trap for the advancing Federals.
Academic text (2007) -
This guy's a wily one.
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I'll grant you, the universe is a little wily, a little unpredictable.
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Not only was Richard wily and annoying, but he could actually be hazardous.
Fiction book (1993) -
She is a wily one.
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This is a wily perpetrator.
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There's no telling what them wily space creatures will be up to.
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Dove was smart, wily, and believed firmly in the good old capitalist ideal.
Fiction book (1999) -
Horses died in their thousands from poor fodder and exhaustion, and they faced a dangerous and wily opponent in Russia's Cossacks.
Synonyms
60
4.9
Being clever in a secret way to trick others
58
5.1
Clever at getting things by tricking people
49
4.5
Good at using clever tricks to get what you want
19
4.5
Uses lies or clever plans to get what they want
8
6.3
Clever and careful when dealing with money or business
5
8.8
Clever in a dishonest way to trick people
1
9.9
Acting in a way that tricks people to get what you want
1
9.1
Behaving in a sly way that tries to fool people
1
8.2
Being clever at secretly tricking people for personal gain
1
8.9
A person or plan that tricks people to get what they want
Antonyms
How Wily
Surface Forms
Morphology
Etymology
Wily comes from an old English word wile, which means 'trick'. So a wily person is 'full of tricks' and uses clever or slightly deceptive methods to gain an advantage.