as in to outsmart
to get the better of through cleverness
a plan to outwit their opponents at their own game
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of outwit
Maduro has in any case outwitted dozens of attempts to depose him over the years.
—
Quico Toro, The Atlantic, 4 Nov. 2025
Time and Numbers—there’s no outwitting them.
—Joy Williams, Harpers Magazine, 24 Oct. 2025
To win, the contestants must outwit their opponents and identify the suspect, location and murder weapon of the crime.
—Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 7 Oct. 2025
Though Penn State had a key injury with linebacker Tony Rojas sidelined, Knowles was also outwitted by Neuheisel, who only took over the role for the Bruins earlier this week.
—Cameron Teague Robinson, New York Times, 5 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for outwit
Quico Toro, The Atlantic, 4 Nov. 2025
Time and Numbers—there’s no outwitting them.
—Joy Williams, Harpers Magazine, 24 Oct. 2025
To win, the contestants must outwit their opponents and identify the suspect, location and murder weapon of the crime.
—Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 7 Oct. 2025
Though Penn State had a key injury with linebacker Tony Rojas sidelined, Knowles was also outwitted by Neuheisel, who only took over the role for the Bruins earlier this week.
—Cameron Teague Robinson, New York Times, 5 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for outwit
Recent Examples of Synonyms for outwit
Verb
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TikToks promising secret loopholes, Reddit threads dissecting deductions and content creators insisting ways to outsmart the IRS.—
Miriam Fauzia,
Dallas Morning News,
18 Feb. 2026
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Furthermore, Microsoft executives threw in their lot with the mercurial Altman, who doesn’t care at all about them and seems to outsmart them at every turn.—
Jim Cramer,
CNBC,
15 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The Strategic Powerhouses These names are inspired by women who lead with their minds, outmaneuvering everyone in the room.—
Lauren Brown West-Rosenthal,
Parents,
19 Feb. 2026
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With the rise of prediction markets allowing people to bet on elections, sports, musical performances and live press conferences, traders are becoming increasingly creative to outmaneuver other bettors.—
Bobby Allyn,
NPR,
17 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Former Mayor Eric Adams attempted to thwart Mamdani’s plans by stacking the Rent Guidelines Board with his own appointees at the end of his term.—
Josephine Stratman,
New York Daily News,
18 Feb. 2026
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The military said in a statement that the attackers overnight had sought to breach the checkpoint but were thwarted by security forces.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
17 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Neglecting The Kitchen Sink Your sink may look spick-and-span, but looks can be deceiving.—
Melissa Locker,
Southern Living,
16 Feb. 2026
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But a superficial comparison between Delta, United, and American across certain headline metrics can be deceiving.—
Jeffrey Sonnenfeld,
Fortune,
16 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Sherman Oaks Notre Dame defeated Corona Centennial 59-56.—
Eric Sondheimer,
Los Angeles Times,
21 Feb. 2026
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That particular corner was filled with pink shirts and defeated faces, and Salloi stood in front of them, fingers in the corners of his mouth, drawing his smile wide like the Joker.—
Daniel Sperry,
Kansas City Star,
20 Feb. 2026
Verb
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France’s Eric Perrot overcame a wobble on the final shoot and a late surge from Norway’s Vetle Sjaastad Christiansen to win a sensational first men’s relay gold medal for his country today.—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
17 Feb. 2026
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While most fungal attempts at infection fail, a small number do succeed thanks to the constant evolutionary pressure on pathogens to overcome host plant defenses.—
Lily Peck,
The Conversation,
17 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Liv Morgan begged for a tag, but she was outfoxed by a blind tag from Rhea Ripley.—
Alfred Konuwa,
Forbes.com,
25 Jan. 2026
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But even foxes can outfox themselves by their own designs.—
Jeffrey Sonnenfeld,
Time,
20 Jan. 2026
Verb
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What fools these non-OpenAI mortals must be.—
Jim Cramer,
CNBC,
15 Feb. 2026
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Still, don’t be fooled by the light turnout.—
Alyssa Goldberg,
USA Today,
14 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Outwit.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/outwit. Accessed 23 Feb. 2026.
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