outfox

verb

ˌau̇t-ˈfäks How to pronounce outfox (audio)
Definition of outfoxnext
as in to outwit
to get the better of through cleverness the prisoners outfoxed the guards by tunneling beneath the prison walls

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of outfox But even foxes can outfox themselves by their own designs. — Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Time, 20 Jan. 2026 Los Angeles had already outfoxed the 49ers in 2021 by trading for Matthew Stafford, who was also on Shanahan’s radar. — Jerry McDonald, Mercury News, 2 Oct. 2025 No doubt remained that I’d been outfoxed. — Charles Elliott, Outdoor Life, 21 Aug. 2025 The most challenging part of a campaign for Crimea may not be outfoxing Russia. — Andriy Zagorodnyuk, Foreign Affairs, 2 Jan. 2023 See All Example Sentences for outfox
Recent Examples of Synonyms for outfox
  1. outwit
  2. outsmart
  3. outmaneuver
  4. thwart
  5. deceive
  6. defeat
  7. overcome
  8. fox
Verb
  • All season long, Ray and Sugar have been trying to outwit each other.
    — Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 31 July 2026
  • To say that Cucurella was pleased, when the Spanish side outwitted the French in the semifinal, would be an understatement.
    — Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 17 July 2026
Definition of outwit
Verb
  • But, at the same time, the car’s computing system that controls electrical deployment is trying to outsmart them.
    — Luke Smith, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2026
  • At a certain point, people won’t be able to outsmart advanced AI anymore; this is not just another opinion.
    — Tim Bajarin, Forbes.com, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of outsmart
Verb
  • The characters' abilities are built around outmaneuvering, not outgunning.
    — Brian Mazique, Forbes.com, 15 Aug. 2026
  • For more than a decade, India’s leader Narendra Modi has seemed politically unassailable, presiding over a government that has outmaneuvered opponents, dominated public discourse and squeezed the space for dissent in the world’s biggest democracy.
    — Rhea Mogul, CNN Money, 28 July 2026
Definition of outmaneuver
Verb
  • After Jackson helped thwart a terror attack in Times Square in 2010, to his surprise, Parton came to visit him again after seeing him on TV.
    — Jesse Zanger, CBS News, 25 Aug. 2026
  • As the writer and the actor spend time together, and the narrator tries to pry open some small window into M’s psyche, the process of gathering material is constantly being thwarted by M’s casual instructability.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of thwart
Verb
  • Jury Duty has managed to deceive two unsuspecting do-gooders with civic duty and a company retreat.
    — Peter White, Deadline, 21 Aug. 2026
  • In this book’s scenario, an explosion at the Siberian lab sets loose a virus that has been designed to spread rapidly, deceive medical professionals, and produce a 100% fatality rate.
    — The Week US, TheWeek, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of deceive
Verb
  • Taylor pitched a career-high 2 2/3 scoreless relief innings and was credited with the win as the Sox defeated the Twins 7-4 in front of 28,140.
    — LaMond Pope, Chicago Tribune, 29 Aug. 2026
  • The Senate Leadership Fund, a political committee controlled by Senate Majority Leader John Thune, has committed to spending $44 million in Georgia in hopes of defeating Ossoff.
    — Tia Mitchell, AJC.com, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of defeat
Verb
  • And then, with the game in the balance, Taylor’s two 3-pointers over the Valkyries — against man-to-man defense — was too much to overcome.
    — Joseph Dycus, Mercury News, 22 Aug. 2026
  • This method could potentially be adapted for industrial manufacturing, but there were still limitations to overcome, with the biggest one being the quality of the material.
    — Maryna Holovnova, New Atlas, 22 Aug. 2026
Definition of overcome
Verb
  • Aged glass can develop dark spots and edge deterioration known as foxing.
    — Rachel Silva, Martha Stewart, 14 Aug. 2026
  • That will require out-foxing Patriots defensive play-caller Zak Kuhr, whose pressure game plans suffocated the Chargers and Texans the past two weeks.
    — Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 23 Jan. 2026
Definition of fox

Browse Nearby Words

outfought
outfox
outfoxed
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Outfox.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/outfox. Accessed 30 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Commonly Misspelled Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Aug. 28

Why do we say 'break a leg'?
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
skateboard-dog-hat
Wordmaxxing Slang Quiz Give your vocabulary a glow up by getting sendy w...
See All