as in cunning
skill in achieving one's ends through indirect, subtle, or underhanded means
we were both impressed and outraged by the expert slickness with which the swindler fooled us
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of slickness
And despite the Grand Hotel Belvedere's slickness, behind the scenes it is run according to the sweet sort of interdependence demanded by any small town but especially one so isolated.
—
Alice Gregory, Condé Nast Traveler, 11 Feb. 2026
He was ruled offside, but the poor timing of his run takes nothing away from the slickness of the combination, nor the effectiveness of the tactic.
—Liam Tharme, New York Times, 28 Oct. 2025
Still working through residual resentments from last year, her lyrics this cycle often clash with the careful slickness of the production.
—Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 3 Oct. 2025
Untouched by any chain stores or contemporary slickness, the neighborhood’s highlights include the Tea House on Los Rios inside a 1911 Victorian, cottage-like Hummingbird House Cafe and Hidden House Coffee found inside a Craftsman.
—Staff Report, Oc Register, 17 Sep. 2025
There’s a slickness about the style of everyone who lives here, and Missy captures that.
—Robyn Mowatt, Essence, 9 Sep. 2025
Alice Gregory, Condé Nast Traveler, 11 Feb. 2026
He was ruled offside, but the poor timing of his run takes nothing away from the slickness of the combination, nor the effectiveness of the tactic.
—Liam Tharme, New York Times, 28 Oct. 2025
Still working through residual resentments from last year, her lyrics this cycle often clash with the careful slickness of the production.
—Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 3 Oct. 2025
Untouched by any chain stores or contemporary slickness, the neighborhood’s highlights include the Tea House on Los Rios inside a 1911 Victorian, cottage-like Hummingbird House Cafe and Hidden House Coffee found inside a Craftsman.
—Staff Report, Oc Register, 17 Sep. 2025
There’s a slickness about the style of everyone who lives here, and Missy captures that.
—Robyn Mowatt, Essence, 9 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for slickness
Noun
-
Maybe the mere fact of having been born illustrious, with no apparent faults, with nothing to prove or to be ashamed of, had liberated John from the resentments the rest of us feel, and from the cunning and ambition such resentments fuel.—
Jeffrey Eugenides,
New Yorker,
4 Apr. 2026
-
The Brazil international combines technical craft with a decisive cunning.—
Carl Anka,
New York Times,
21 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
This year’s lineup suggests that subtlety may carry the day, but there is always room for a little theater.—
Oren Hartov,
Robb Report,
14 Apr. 2026
-
There’s nothing fancy about a big, square screen that sits upstage of the circular playing area, but the subtlety in which the images and mood flows through the screen greatly enhance the storytelling.—
David John Chávez,
Mercury News,
10 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Mike Bowman, designer, furniture industry expert, and director of marketing for Harmonia Living, says this trend relies on furnishings to bring artfulness to a space—rather than just functionality.—
Patricia Shannon,
Better Homes & Gardens,
10 Jan. 2026
-
There is a real seriousness to the score — the scheming bad-guy music has the artfulness of Prokofiev, and even the sneaking-around cues have musical integrity and structure.—
Tim Greiving,
Vulture,
3 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Like the tricksters of myth, there’s depth to their slyness.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
5 Feb. 2026
-
Ay, the superb slyness of that last response!—
Anthony Lane,
New Yorker,
8 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
For everyday ease, Rubinski relies on a rotating cast of Ralph Lauren staples.—
Talia Abbas,
Vogue,
16 Apr. 2026
-
In astrology, Venus speaks to your desires, relationships and sense of ease, while Mars governs your actions, impulses and pursuits.—
Valerie Mesa,
PEOPLE,
15 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The move has allowed Brind’Amour to load up his top line with Andrei Svechnikov and Seth Jarvis on Aho’s wing, while Hall has brought size and veteran guile to the second line with Stankoven and Blake.—
Cory Lavalette,
New York Times,
21 Mar. 2026
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In other districts, however, the wealthy pastoralists managed by guile and financial manipulation to evade the land acts, and very many of them acquired freeholds to large estates at low prices, especially in the fertile Western District.—
Britannica Editors,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
19 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Slickness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/slickness. Accessed 19 Apr. 2026.
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