as in cunning
skill in achieving one's ends through indirect, subtle, or underhanded means
the slyness with which the FBI agent infiltrated the subversive organization without their knowledge was indeed impressive
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Recent Examples of slyness
Ay, the superb slyness of that last response!
—
Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2025
Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for slyness
Noun
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Because Maradona, in a burst of cunning and trickery, also used his hand.—
Esteban Campanela,
CNN Money,
25 Nov. 2025
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Landing a good apartment in New York City can take some cunning.—
Matthew Sedacca,
Curbed,
5 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Its challenge will be scale — and whether subtlety can compete with spectacle and satire once preferential ballots come into play.—
Clayton Davis,
Variety,
12 Jan. 2026
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The visual arc deliberately eschewed subtlety.—
Paul Jebara,
Condé Nast Traveler,
10 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Slyness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/slyness. Accessed 14 Jan. 2026.
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