sleight of hand
noun phrase
1
a
: a cleverly executed trick or deception
b
: a conjuring trick requiring manual dexterity
2
a
: skill and dexterity in conjuring tricks
b
: adroitness in deception
Examples of sleight of hand in a Sentence
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Audiences might enjoy this cinematic sleight of hand, but the key characters are such single-minded, calculating individuals that the real magic would be to find any heart in this tale.
—
Kirk Honeycutt, HollywoodReporter, 20 Oct. 2025
With no use for the quotidian, Beaton’s visual sleight of hand turned balloons, cellophane, mirrors, paper, and vases into fantastical dreamscapes and silvery grottos, his patient sisters sitting for pictures until society came to call.
—Tracy Doyle, Air Mail, 11 Oct. 2025
As the creative director for Boucheron, Claire Choisne has the sleight of hand of a magician — conjuring extraordinary jewelry from her imagination.
—Thomas Waller, Footwear News, 11 Oct. 2025
In their nine years working together, the decorators have developed their own sleight of hand, cleverly camouflaging pragmatic choices as strictly aesthetic ones.
—Betsy Cribb Watson, Southern Living, 7 Oct. 2025
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Kirk Honeycutt, HollywoodReporter, 20 Oct. 2025
With no use for the quotidian, Beaton’s visual sleight of hand turned balloons, cellophane, mirrors, paper, and vases into fantastical dreamscapes and silvery grottos, his patient sisters sitting for pictures until society came to call.
—Tracy Doyle, Air Mail, 11 Oct. 2025
As the creative director for Boucheron, Claire Choisne has the sleight of hand of a magician — conjuring extraordinary jewelry from her imagination.
—Thomas Waller, Footwear News, 11 Oct. 2025
In their nine years working together, the decorators have developed their own sleight of hand, cleverly camouflaging pragmatic choices as strictly aesthetic ones.
—Betsy Cribb Watson, Southern Living, 7 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sleight of hand
Cite this Entry
“Sleight of hand.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sleight%20of%20hand. Accessed 21 Oct. 2025.
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