wily

adjective

ˈwī-lē How to pronounce wily (audio)
wilier; wiliest
Synonyms of wily
: full of wiles : crafty
a wily negotiator
wilily
ˈwī-lə-lē How to pronounce wily (audio)
adverb
wiliness
ˈwī-lē-nəs How to pronounce wily (audio)
noun

Synonyms of wily

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sly, cunning, crafty, wily, tricky, foxy, artful, slick mean attaining or seeking to attain one's ends by guileful or devious means.

sly implies furtiveness, lack of candor, and skill in concealing one's aims and methods.

a sly corporate raider

cunning suggests the inventive use of sometimes limited intelligence in overreaching or circumventing.

the cunning fox avoided the trap

crafty implies cleverness and subtlety of method.

a crafty lefthander

wily implies skill and deception in maneuvering.

the wily fugitive escaped the posse

tricky is more likely to suggest shiftiness and unreliability than skill in deception and maneuvering.

a tricky political operative

foxy implies a shrewd and wary craftiness usually involving devious dealing.

a foxy publicity man planting stories

artful implies indirectness in dealing and often connotes sophistication or cleverness.

elicited the information by artful questioning

slick emphasizes smoothness and guile.

slick operators selling time-sharing

Examples of wily in a Sentence

She turned out to be a wily negotiator. a wily judge of character, she takes advantage of car buyers' insecurities to sell them a bigger machine than they really need
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The Braves have the edge, but the Phillies are always wily little villains. — Aj Willingham, AJC.com, 4 Sep. 2026 The wily, beguiling poems in this collection probe selves and stories as sites of rupture and refraction. — The New Yorker, New Yorker, 31 Aug. 2026 But the clever and wily ruler of the Sikh Kingdom of Punjab, Maharaja Ranjit Singh, was obsessed with bringing the Koh-i-Noor back to India. — Hadley Hall Meares, Vanity Fair, 17 Aug. 2026 Maye took the snap and gave it away again, set up by some wily safety play. — Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 6 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for wily

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of wily was in the 14th century

Rhymes for wily

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Browse Nearby Words

Wiltshire side
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wimberry
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Cite this Entry

“Wily.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wily. Accessed 7 Sep. 2026.

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Kids Definition

wily

adjective
ˈwī-lē How to pronounce wily (audio)
wilier; wiliest
: full of deceit : tricky
a wily opponent
wiliness noun
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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