outwit

verb

ˌau̇t-ˈwit How to pronounce outwit (audio)
Definition of outwitnext
as in to outsmart
to get the better of through cleverness a plan to outwit their opponents at their own game

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 outwit Similar storm-clouds are now gathering around Sánchez, a canny politician known for outwitting his opponents. — Tim Lister, CNN Money, 21 June 2026 Out of the first 3,000 participants, only three adults managed to outwit the kids and win the million-dollar grand prize. — Greg Petro, Forbes.com, 11 June 2026 The Bed Rot Challenge is a new reality competition web series in which stars from Survivor, The Traitors, Love Island USA, The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, The Bachelorette, and Beast Games will attempt to outwit and outlast each other… on a bed. — Dalton Ross, Entertainment Weekly, 27 May 2026 Towering over the town is another, much bigger, Venetian fort, the Palamidhi (named after Palamedes, Nafplio’s legendarily clever local hero, who outwitted Odysseus and, well, didn’t live long enough to regret it). — Helen Brown, TheWeek, 30 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for outwit
Recent Examples of Synonyms for outwit
  1. outsmart
  2. outmaneuver
  3. thwart
  4. deceive
  5. defeat
  6. overcome
  7. outfox
  8. fool
Verb
  • 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
  • The problem, according to Hinton, is that humans will no longer be able to rely on outsmarting super-intelligent AI models.
    — Matt Egan, CNN Money, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of outsmart
Verb
  • 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
  • But while in theory, a superhuman AI system might outmaneuver even the most secure containers, there are also actions AI companies could take right now to improve security.
    — Harry Booth, Time, 24 July 2026
Definition of outmaneuver
Verb
  • Gilligan’s Island, American television sitcom about a group of castaways on a desert island and the chaos that ensues as their attempts at rescue are constantly thwarted.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 5 Aug. 2026
  • Recyclers have been thwarted by PVC’s chemical architecture, specifically its heavy chlorine content and dense cocktail of additives, which make melting and mechanical reprocessing almost impossible.
    — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of thwart
Verb
  • Such a lease, however, would disqualify a hospice from obtaining a license, and a provider would need to intentionally deceive inspectors to disguise a day office, experts said.
    — Jason Henry, Daily News, 9 Aug. 2026
  • Someone who has maintained an entire second family has demonstrated a willingness to deceive you over an extended period of time.
    — Jann Blackstone, Boston Herald, 9 Aug. 2026
Definition of deceive
Verb
  • Martínez was a headache to both pitchers, hitting a grand slam against Sandlin and finishing with a career-high six RBIs as the Guardians defeated the Sox 8-2.
    — LaMond Pope, Chicago Tribune, 8 Aug. 2026
  • But the technology for defeating ballistic missiles has advanced significantly since the Cold War.
    — Nathan Hodge, CNN Money, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of defeat
Verb
  • Prosecutors will have to overcome a few key hurdles in their case.
    — Eric Levenson, CNN Money, 9 Aug. 2026
  • Four firefighters were killed and a fifth was injured after they were overcome by a fast-moving wildfire in Colorado, near the Utah border, in June.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 8 Aug. 2026
Definition of overcome
Verb
  • Whenever Rebecca can outfox him, Rupert manages to manipulate situations, which is how the Water sign aims to take control of matters.
    — Lisa Stardust, PEOPLE, 5 Aug. 2026
  • Hansi Flick stands in the iconic ground’s dugout, and a Mourinho believed to be past his best would have to find a way to outfox the German and unravel his high-scoring outfit with a defensive high line.
    — Tom Sanderson, Forbes.com, 3 June 2026
Definition of outfox
Verb
  • Do not be fooled by icing that maybe has a little bit of cream cheese in it.
    — AJ Willingham, AJC.com, 8 Aug. 2026
  • At the Black Hat security conference, one researcher demonstrated a way to fool current facial recognition models with a little help from the fashion world.
    — Kim Key, PC Magazine, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of fool

Browse Nearby Words

outweighs
outwit
outwits
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Outwit.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/outwit. Accessed 11 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on outwit

Nglish: Translation of outwit for Spanish Speakers

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

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

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

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

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Aug. 7

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
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
fridge-magnet-letters
Drop a Letter Quiz August 2026 Drop a letter from a word to make a totally diffe...
See All