foxy

adjective

ˈfäk-sē 

foxier; foxiest

1

: resembling or suggestive of a fox

a narrow foxy face

: such as

a

: cunningly shrewd

b

: of a warm reddish-brown color

foxy eyebrows

2

: having a sharp brisk flavor

foxy grapes

3

: physically attractive

a foxy lady

foxily

ˈfäk-sə-lē 

adverb

foxiness

ˈfäk-sē-nəs 

noun

Synonyms

• cute
• cunning
• subtle

Choose the Right Synonym for foxy

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 foxy in a Sentence

the oft-told story of the foxy flatterer who works her way up the ladder of success by stepping on people as she goes

Recent Examples on the Web

Over the weekend, his foxy friend Pete Hegseth announced a new policy that requires journalists with Pentagon press credentials to sign a pledge promising not to report information that hasn't been explicitly authorized for release, that includes unclassified information. —Brendan Morrow, USA Today, 24 Sep. 2025

Over the weekend, his foxy friend, Pete Hegseth, announced a new policy that requires journalists with Pentagon press credentials to sign a pledge promising not to report information that hasn't been explicitly authorized for release. —Martha McHardy, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 Sep. 2025

One highlight involves Wolf’s love interest, the literally and figuratively foxy Governor Foxington (Zazie Beetz), visiting the villainous Professor Marmalade (Richard Ayoade) in prison looking for advice. —Frank Scheck, HollywoodReporter, 24 July 2025

With a lady photographer and a foxy actress named, incredibly, Poupee Bocar, K. & I sneak aboard the People’s Train for a day at Machu Picchu. —Tom Burke, Rolling Stone, 29 Sep. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1528, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for foxy

• boxy
• oxy
• proxy
• alkoxy
• deoxy
• epoxy
• ethoxy
• hydroxy
• methoxy
• peroxy
• phenoxy
• dihydroxy

Kids Definition

foxy

adjective

ˈfäk-sē 

foxier; foxiest

1

: resembling a fox in appearance

2

: cunning and careful in planning and action

3

: physically attractive

foxily

-sə-lē 

adverb

foxiness

-sē-nəs 

noun