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pawky

adjective

Definition of pawkynext
chiefly British
as in cunning

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for pawky
  1. cunning
  2. sly
  3. wily
  4. subtle
  5. shrewd
  6. guileful
  7. astute
  8. artful
Adjective
  • Meanwhile, third wife Iya Femi (Bimbo Ademoye) is the most cunning and ruthless in trying to defend her position within the household, playing up to Iya Segi’s schemes as her most willing conspirator.
    — Murtada Elfadl, Variety, 16 Sep. 2026
  • But the heart of this story is the toxic years-long romance between Marjorie and her co-conspirator Bill Rothstein (David Harbour), an equally cunning player who was blinded by love.
    — Glenn Garner, Deadline, 14 Sep. 2026
Definition of cunning
Adjective
  • Whether these stories are fictional or heightened for comic effect is irrelevant; Simmons-Patterson’s conversational delivery and sly smile are so magnetic that audiences want to spend time in his universe either way.
    — Kathryn VanArendonk, Vulture, 21 Sep. 2026
  • Asked if Cole would be guaranteed a start in the Wild Card round, the likeliest scenario for the Yankees, the manager replied with a sly smile on Friday.
    — Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 19 Sep. 2026
Definition of sly
Adjective
  • The Italian champions’ addition of Three Lions — England internationals John Stones, Curtis Jones and Djed Spence — is aimed at bringing more dynamism to a wily group who have reached two Champions League finals in four years.
    — James Horncastle, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026
  • The Braves have the edge, but the Phillies are always wily little villains.
    — AJ Willingham, AJC.com, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of wily
Adjective
  • The comic tension embodies Cassavetes’ approach to the entire film, which involved some not-so-subtle manipulation of his actors behind the scenes.
    — Jim Hemphill, IndieWire, 23 Sep. 2026
  • And just like her clothes and accessories serve as a subtle nod to the '90s, so does her beauty look.
    — Marci Robin, Allure, 23 Sep. 2026
Definition of subtle
Adjective
  • This takes sharp eyes from above, intricate sideline dialogue and shrewd on-field adaptation.
    — Alec Lewis, New York Times, 16 Sep. 2026
  • The bursts of comedy don’t lighten the mood, but instead sharpen the emotion and clarify the intensity, the way a shrewd joke might at a funeral.
    — Natalia Winkelman, Variety, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of shrewd
Adjective
  • Bruno Guimaraes and Lucas Paqueta played guileful defence-splitting passes.
    — James Horncastle, New York Times, 20 June 2026
  • One is to emphasize Iago—the guileful, insinuating convincingness of this malicious supervillain, who works on Othello to the point where any reasonable man would be deceived and fooled and worked into a rage that can lead to such a catastrophe.
    — David Frum, The Atlantic, 17 June 2026
Definition of guileful
Adjective
  • As some astute readers have pointed out, Gen has piled up a lot of dirty laundry this season.
    — Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 22 Sep. 2026
  • Bowman, Babcock and Chaulk can aid each player’s progress with some astute deployment.
    — Allan Mitchell, New York Times, 14 Sep. 2026
Definition of astute
Adjective
  • Both Farrelly and Antoine Fuqua, the director of the latter film, are making something more broad than artful.
    — Marcus Jones, IndieWire, 18 Sep. 2026
  • The dining room and bar, while filled with personal artful touches, could use a refresh by a professional designer, just as the menu benefited from a consulting chef.
    — Louisa Kung Liu Chu, Chicago Tribune, 15 Sep. 2026
Definition of artful
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.

Browse Nearby Words

pawing
pawky
pawn
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Cite this Entry

“Pawky.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pawky. Accessed 25 Sep. 2026.

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