artful

adjective art·ful \ ˈärt-fəl \

|Updated on: 18 Jun 2018

Tip: Synonym Guide

Examples: artful in a Sentence

Editor's Note: Did You Know?

Definition of artful

1 : performed with or showing art or skill

an artful performance on the violin

2 a : using or characterized by art and skill : dexterous

an artful prose stylist

b : adroit in attaining an end usually by insinuating or indirect means : wily

an artful cross-examiner

3 : artificial

trim walks and artful bowers
—William Wordsworth

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artfully

play \-fə-lē\ adverb

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artfulness

noun

See artful defined for English-language learners

See artful defined for kids

Examples of artful in a Sentence

the artful lawyer got the witness to admit he had been lying
that kitchen gadget is an artful tool for extracting cherry pits

Recent Examples of artful from the Web

Her artful portraits of Tom Ford, the Brock designers, Donatella Versace, and more added a touch more playfulness to the night.

— katarina kovac, Vogue, "Minimal Waste and a Recycled Red Carpet: Inside This Year’s CFDA Awards Dinner," 5 June 2018
Pumpkins still out on every stoop but few carved faces— artful arrangements, rather, of gourds and Indian corn. Wrought iron fences, swinging gates.

— rebecca makkai, chicagotribune.com, "An excerpt from 'The Great Believers' by Rebecca Makkai: 1985," 21 May 2018
Tesla responded rapidly and its cupholders in the Model X are now artful, curved, and customizable for any drink size.

— nancy a. nichols, The Atlantic, "Cupholders Are Everywhere," 22 Apr. 2018
A decade later, fashion bloggers were ascendant, abandoning artful focus and giving sidewalk dandies a flicker of fame.

— brenda cronin, WSJ, "A Century of Fashion and Photographic Genius," 1 June 2018
The artful results are on display now in the rooms at Montauk's cool kid spot The Surf Lodge as part of its ongoing artist residency.

— kerry pieri, Harper's BAZAAR, "These Artful Surfboards Are Right at Home in Montauk," 30 May 2018
The book, written with Clapper’s longtime speechwriter, Trey Brown, obviously benefits from his aide’s artful hand, teeing up jokes that land pages later.

— garrett m. graff, WIRED, "How a Former US Spy Chief Became Trump’s Fiercest Critic," 30 May 2018
But at evening’s end, qualms mattered less than the afterglow of an artful dinner.

— tim smith, baltimoresun.com, "Exceptional food, pleasant setting at Kings Contrivance Restaurant," 17 May 2018
People likely to benefit most by this major ruling: Pretty much everybody else, particularly those who love sports not just for the artful athleticism or spirit of competition, but also for the opportunity to parlay that love into a buck or three.

— greg cote, miamiherald, "Why the Supreme Court's seismic ruling on sports gambling is a big win and was overdue | Miami Herald," 14 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'artful.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Did You Know?

A writer may produce an artful piece of prose, one that's clearly and elegantly written. The same writer might also make an artful argument, one that cleverly leaves out certain details and plays up others so as to make a stronger case. In the first instance, the prose is well crafted; in the second, the argument might instead be called crafty. But even though both uses are correct, most of us still use artful somewhat differently from artistic.

First Known Use of artful

1583

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

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artful Synonyms

Synonym Discussion of artful

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

ARTFUL Defined for English Language Learners

artful

adjective

Definition of artful for English Language Learners

: done with or showing artistic skill
: good at getting or achieving things in ways that are clever and not noticeable : used to get or achieve things in ways that are clever and not noticeable