artfully

adverb

Definition of artfullynext
as in masterfully
in a skillful or expert manner the sushi chef artfully filleted the salmon

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of artfully His bed, once artfully tussled, is a feat of military-tight corners. — Sam Cochran, Architectural Digest, 16 Oct. 2026 While posing artfully in the store’s shop window, Klara catches the eye of Josie (Mia Tharia), who persuades her mother Chrissie (Amy Adams) to buy her as a companion. — Damon Wise, Deadline, 15 Oct. 2026 Though Simone Rocha’s pink fluff of formal attire from her spring 2027 collection was full of playful romance, Edgar-Jones’s structured Chloé design artfully contrasted with a past era’s traditional adoption of romantic verve. — Julia Teti, Footwear News, 8 Oct. 2026 Clearing the air, artfully, is an opportunity to draw a group closer together. — Margaret Wappler, Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2026 For Lauper, nothing was off-limits for expressive modification, including her mane of colorful hair and artfully experimental makeup. — Kristen Bateman, Vogue, 5 Oct. 2026 Jobe artfully got both feet in bounds to secure the turnover, and the 13-10 victory for Seattle. — Andrew Greif, NBC news, 10 Sep. 2026 Director Maiken Baird artfully weaves selections from that public record with home movies, lectures, and other docs to create an entirely archival feature, a kind of cinematic essay from Said in his own words. — Joe Reid, Vulture, 10 Sep. 2026 This bookish, boutique hotel sits artfully on the edge of Nye Beach. — Sierra Vandervort, Travel + Leisure, 10 Sep. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for artfully
  1. masterfully
  2. skillfully
  3. well
  4. neatly
  5. expertly
  6. deftly
  7. capably
Adverb
  • Ahluwalia x Puma Blending the designer’s Indian-Nigerian culture with Puma’s legendary sportswear designs, this partnership masterfully resulted in a colorful, chic athleisure capsule.
    — Virginia Corneli, Footwear News, 23 Sep. 2026
  • The Soundcore Select 4 Go pairs an adventure-proof IP67 design with exceptional 20-hour battery life masterfully.
    — Juhi Wadia, PC Magazine, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of masterfully
Adverb
  • When daily life can feel quite bruising and fractious, documentaries skillfully encourage us to let our guard down and connect with real-life stories and people… sometimes challenging, often invigorating, and always meaningful.
    — Matthew Carey, Deadline, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Baseball serves as a test platform for these underlying capabilities, with dexterous manipulation, the ability to handle objects skillfully and reliably, remaining the larger objective.
    — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 10 Oct. 2026
Definition of skillfully
Adverb
  • The Horned Frogs also have one of the country’s best tight ends in Kari Ashley, who has been a breakout star.
    — Steven Johnson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 19 Oct. 2026
  • The cosmonauts plonked down on November 19th, 1965 in the Midlands market town of Rugby, a cultural backwater best known for the sport, the school, and wartime poet Rupert Brooke, in that order.
    — Gabriel Szatan, Pitchfork, 18 Oct. 2026
Definition of well
Adverb
  • What makes the guest list truly striking is its refusal to stay neatly within the lines of traditional fashion.
    — Arthur Zaczkiewicz, Footwear News, 13 Oct. 2026
  • Although System of a Down is often grouped with the nu metal bands that dominated heavy music at the time, including Korn and Limp Bizkit, Malakian never saw the band as fitting neatly into any genre.
    — Alex Distefano, Los Angeles Times, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of neatly
Adverb
  • Kelela expertly navigated this conversation while promoting her immersive New Avatar, which surveys indie rock, shoegaze and grunge from an R&B vantage point.
    — Kyle Denis, Billboard, 12 Oct. 2026
  • Setting the shifting moods expertly is Michael Giacchino’s score that nicely avoids the clichés of the genre(s) while still honoring them.
    — Pete Hammond, Deadline, 10 Oct. 2026
Definition of expertly
Adverb
  • John Steinbeck wrote Cathy Ames, the antagonist of his novel East of Eden, as the embodiment of original sin, and in Zoe Kazan’s Netflix adaptation, Florence Pugh deftly channels the character’s ambition and cynicism.
    — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 16 Oct. 2026
  • His predecessor, Tim Cook, gained stature on the world stage as a power broker deftly navigating global politics, markets, and supply chains.
    — Andrew R. Chow, Time, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of deftly
Adverb
  • The rest of the filmmaking, too, is content to coast at a lower difficulty setting, from the proficient but anonymously taupe lensing by master DP Robert Elswit to an untested ensemble of ever-watchable actors playing capably to type.
    — Guy Lodge, Variety, 8 Oct. 2026
  • And there was also a favorable response on Saturday to Amazon/MGM’s Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother, an action-thriller led capably by Mahershala Ali.
    — Scott Feinberg, HollywoodReporter, 20 Sep. 2026
Definition of capably

Browse Nearby Words

artful
artfully
artfulness
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Artfully.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/artfully. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

Did 'orange' the fruit or the color come first?
See More

Popular

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
artwork of illustrated limes with the text limes and smile with an arrow connecting the two words
Quiz: Spot the Anagram! Scramble these words to find new words with the e...
See All