cagey

1 clever at attaining one's ends by indirect and often deceptive means <a cagey old politician who is exceptionally skilled at getting federal money for his district> Synonyms beguiling, artful (also cagy), crafty, cunning, cute, designing, devious, dodgy [chiefly British], foxy, guileful, scheming, shrewd, slick, sly, subtle, tricky, wilyRelated Words astute, facile, glib, sharp; crooked, deceitful, deceptive, dishonest, fraudulent, insinuating, knavish, Machiavellian, oblique, serpentine, shady, shifty, slippery, sneaky, treacherous, underhand, underhanded, unscrupulous; backhanded, double-dealing, hypocritical, insincere, left-handed, mealy, mealymouthed, smooth-tongued, two-faced; circuitous, circular, roundabout; clandestine, concealed, covert, furtive, hugger-mugger, secret, stealthy, surreptitious, undercover; calculating, plottingNear Antonyms obvious, open, patent, plain, public, unconcealed; aboveboard, candid, direct, forthright, frank, honest, natural, outspoken, plainspoken, real, simple, sincere, straightforward, unaffected, unpretending, unpretentious, unvarnished; childlike, impressionable, simpleminded, unsophisticated, unworldly; unforced, unstudied; trustful, trustingAntonyms artless, guileless, ingenuous, innocent, undesigning

2 slow to begin or proceed with a course of action because of doubts or uncertainty <when it came time to sign the contract, he suddenly got cagey about taking on the job> Synonyms hesitant (also cagy), disinclined, dubious, indisposed, loath (also loth or loathe), reluctant, reticentRelated Words uneager, unenthusiastic; averse, unwilling; ambivalent, conflicted, doubtful, faltering, halting, indecisive, infirm, irresolute, questioning, skeptical, uncertain, undecided, unsure, vacillating, wobbly (also wabbly); fainthearted, shy, timidNear Antonyms eager, enthusiastic, glad, happy, keen; ready, willing; certain, decided, determined, resolute, sure, unquestioningAntonyms disposed, inclined