as in ruses
a clever often underhanded means to achieve an end
had to use all of her wiles to convince her guests to stay for dinner
Synonyms & Similar Words
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as in charms
to attract or delight as if by magic
her stories of the Old South could wile anyone
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of wiles
Stewart Clarke, Deadline, 14 Apr. 2026
A’zion, as the protagonist’s married lover, who can match his manipulative wiles beat for beat, conveys an exciting, bittersweet sense of the wheels turning beneath deceptive surfaces.
—Richard Brody, New Yorker, 22 Jan. 2026
Determined to find their way back to their humans, the wise Shadow, the sarcastic Sassy, and the impulsive Chance attempt to navigate their way home using only their wiles and each other.
—Chris Snellgrove, Entertainment Weekly, 26 Dec. 2025
That Hedda has forged such a life for herself is a testament to her wiles — no one is more adept at delivering acidic barbs cloaked by a friendly hand on the shoulder.
—Abby Monteil, Them., 28 Oct. 2025
Seeing Laura’s discomfort with her, Cherry employs her feminine wiles to cause a fracture in Laura and Daniel’s connection.
—Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 10 Sep. 2025
Noun
The format has an all-powerful ‘Taskmaster’ who, with the help of a loyal assistant, tests the wiles of a panel of comedians over the course of each series by setting them weird and wonderful challenges.
—Stewart Clarke, Deadline, 14 Apr. 2026
A’zion, as the protagonist’s married lover, who can match his manipulative wiles beat for beat, conveys an exciting, bittersweet sense of the wheels turning beneath deceptive surfaces.
—Richard Brody, New Yorker, 22 Jan. 2026
Determined to find their way back to their humans, the wise Shadow, the sarcastic Sassy, and the impulsive Chance attempt to navigate their way home using only their wiles and each other.
—Chris Snellgrove, Entertainment Weekly, 26 Dec. 2025
That Hedda has forged such a life for herself is a testament to her wiles — no one is more adept at delivering acidic barbs cloaked by a friendly hand on the shoulder.
—Abby Monteil, Them., 28 Oct. 2025
Seeing Laura’s discomfort with her, Cherry employs her feminine wiles to cause a fracture in Laura and Daniel’s connection.
—Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 10 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wiles
Noun
-
Kids will quickly see through her ruses.—
Elise Broach,
New Yorker,
20 Apr. 2026
-
The New York Colored American reported that some offers of short-term work for Black men — moving livestock to or from Kentucky, for example — were ruses that ended with kidnappings.—
Equal Justice Initiative,
USA Today,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
One part of the show that didn’t align with this viewpoint was the casting of Tanzyn Crawford as Tanselle, a traveling performer from Dorne who charms Dunk, and some on social media have griped about the actress being in the show.—
James Hibberd,
HollywoodReporter,
2 Mar. 2026
-
As Sophie Baek, the Cinderella-style housemaid of illegitimate birth who charms the latest eligible Bridgerton bachelor, Ha is exquisite.—
Kathryn VanArendonk,
Vulture,
27 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Working within different schemes tested Smith’s versatility and football IQ.—
Charlotte Observer,
Charlotte Observer,
12 May 2026
-
Trevor began imagining elaborate criminal schemes.—
Matt Thompson,
SPIN,
11 May 2026
Verb
-
SciAm always educates and delights me, and inspires a sense of awe for our vast, beautiful universe.—
Adam Kovac,
Scientific American,
7 May 2026
-
How pretty are these two-bite delights?—
Jenna Sims,
Southern Living,
1 May 2026
Noun
-
In the Jobs era, the Apple ecosystem was its biggest competitive advantage — Cook doubled down on it, with all devices working seamlessly together.—
Vitaliy Katsenelson,
Fortune,
14 May 2026
-
Despite their tiny size, the devices delivered some of the strongest efficiencies reported for ultrathin perovskite solar technology.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
14 May 2026
Verb
-
At the moment, Philadelphia fascinates me most, a Play-In team that has enough talent to make a run to the finals.—
Chris Branch,
New York Times,
4 May 2026
-
Precious artifacts have been recently unearthed from the site that fascinates scholars worldwide.—
Sharon Chin,
CBS News,
1 May 2026
Noun
-
Talent can be seen everywhere, as some students have been able to incorporate back flips and other tricks to elevate their game.—
Marcella Baietto,
CBS News,
12 May 2026
-
Regular Maintenance Is Key Even with helpful tricks and ideal placement, regular cleaning remains the most effective way to keep algae under control.—
Jessica Safavimehr,
Southern Living,
12 May 2026
Verb
-
Trump sees reality through a keyhole that shows him only what interests him.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
13 May 2026
-
The high concentrations of neutrinos near the sun is what interests Solomey.—
Tereza Pultarova,
Space.com,
13 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Wiles.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wiles. Accessed 16 May. 2026.
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