beguiling

adjective

be·​guil·​ing bi-ˈgī-liŋ 

bē-

: agreeably or charmingly attractive or pleasing

a beguiling manner

a beguiling aroma

… it's safe to say that the Balkans have never produced a politician so beguiling.

—Jane Kramer

beguilingly adverb

The restaurant is physically attractive, dishes are beguilingly presented, and the cuisine is always logically inventive, often inspired, sometimes sublime.

—Jay Jacobs

Synonyms

• artful
• cagey
• cagy
• crafty
• cunning
• cute
• designing
• devious
• dodgy [chiefly British]
• foxy
• guileful
• scheming
• shrewd
• slick
• sly
• subtle
• tricky
• wily

Examples of beguiling in a Sentence

a smart and beguiling child who can manipulate her parents with alarming ease

the beguiling allure of a life of crime

Recent Examples on the Web

The country’s ancient capital is a beguiling city where a peaceful shrine, smoky record bar and bustling convenience store can all co-exist in the same block. —Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 5 Jan. 2025

Same story with a hot and sour short rib curry, the chunky, tamarind-tart braising medium beguiling long after the bones have been nibbled bare. —Amiel Stanek, Bon Appetit Magazine, 4 Apr. 2025

This is precisely what makes The Pitt so beguiling, even in the many stories with much more tragic endings. —Kathryn Vanarendonk, Vulture, 13 Mar. 2025

That would be a hard question to answer, which is part of what has made the whole Welch/Rawlings ethos so beguiling. —Chris Willman, Variety, 12 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1646, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for beguiling

• compiling
• profiling
• refiling
• reviling
• stockpiling
• unsmiling
• filing
• piling
• smiling
• styling
• tiling
• reconciling