guile

[ gahyl ]
See synonyms for guile on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. insidious cunning in attaining a goal; crafty or artful deception; duplicity.

Origin of guile

1
1175–1225; Middle English <Old French <Germanic; akin to wile

synonym study For guile

See duplicity.

Other words for guile

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use guile in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for guile

guile

/ (ɡaɪl) /


noun
  1. clever or crafty character or behaviour

Origin of guile

1
C18: from Old French guile, of Germanic origin; see wile

Derived forms of guile

  • guileful, adjective
  • guilefully, adverb
  • guilefulness, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012