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
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
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
-
Landing a good apartment in New York City can take some cunning.—
Matthew Sedacca,
Curbed,
5 Nov. 2025
-
Coaching successfully in such conditions requires a mixture of humility and self-confidence, as well as a certain cunning.—
Dermot Corrigan,
New York Times,
31 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
There’s no subtlety to All’s Fair’s interest in the problems of the wealthy.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
5 Nov. 2025
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And these subtleties, called micro- or meso-expressions, vary from one culture to the next, as well as among individuals within each culture.—
Matt Fuchs,
Time,
4 Nov. 2025
Noun
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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
-
Ay, the superb slyness of that last response!—
Anthony Lane,
New Yorker,
8 Sep. 2025
Noun
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What changed modern warfare was not necessarily the most advanced weapon per se, but rather that the Sherman enabled large-scale mechanized operations, thanks to its ease of production, repair, logistics support, and global deployment across multiple theaters.—
Kaif Shaikh,
Interesting Engineering,
6 Nov. 2025
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These palazzo pants strike the perfect balance between polish and ease, with a silky drape that looks good, even after long travel days.—
Olivia Young,
Travel + Leisure,
6 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Creativity was sorely lacking last season, with the side mustering the lowest xG of any side to avoid relegation, but now an attacking midfield trident of Grealish, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Iliman Ndiaye brims with promise and guile.—
Patrick Boyland,
New York Times,
15 Sep. 2025
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In between is a huge chessboard for honing skills of strategy and guile while catching a tan.—
Mark David,
Robb Report,
4 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Slickness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/slickness. Accessed 18 Nov. 2025.
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