cunning

[kuhn-ing]

noun

1. skill employed in a shrewd or sly manner, as in deceiving; craftiness; guile.

   Synonyms: deception, intrigue, trickery

2. adeptness in performance; dexterity.

   The weaver's hand had not lost its cunning.

   Synonyms: agility, adroitness

adjective

1. showing or made with ingenuity.

   Synonyms: skillful, ingenious

2. artfully subtle or shrewd; crafty; sly.

   Synonyms: foxy, tricky, wily, artful

3. Informal.,  charmingly cute or appealing.

   a cunning little baby.

4. Archaic.,  skillful; expert.

verb

1. Obsolete.,  present participle of can.

cunning

/ ˈkʌnɪŋ /

adjective

1. crafty and shrewd, esp in deception; sly

   cunning as a fox

2. made with or showing skill or cleverness; ingenious

noun

1. craftiness, esp in deceiving; slyness

2. cleverness, skill, or ingenuity

Other Word Forms

• cunningly adverb
• cunningness noun
• overcunning adjective
• overcunningness noun
• quasi-cunning adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of cunning¹

First recorded in 1275–1325; (noun) Middle English; Old English cunnung, equivalent to cunn(an) “to know” ( can ¹ ) + -ung -ing ¹; (adjective, verb) Middle English, present participle of cunnan “to know” ( can ¹, -ing ² )

Word History and Origins

Origin of cunning¹

Old English cunnende; related to cunnan to know (see _can ¹ ), cunnian to test, experience, Old Norse kunna to know

Synonym Study

Cunning, artifice, craft imply an inclination toward deceit, slyness, and trickery. Cunning implies a shrewd, often instinctive skill in concealing or disguising the real purposes of one's actions: not intelligence but a low kind of cunning. An artifice is a clever, unscrupulous ruse, used to mislead others: a successful artifice to conceal one's motives. Craft suggests underhand methods and the use of deceptive devices and tricks to attain one's ends: craft and deceitfulness in every act.

Example Sentences

He also occasionally employed what was known as the “sucker shift,” a cunning tactic he used to draw offsides penalties.

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England may have a landslide of money behind them, but Canada have cut their cloth with care and cunning.

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They are seemingly unaware that a 21st century autocracy is best achieved with cunning and finesse.

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It is hard to know why a cunning and experienced politician like Hun Sen chose to destroy his old friendship with the Shinawatra family and escalate the border tension.

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After a bit of analysis comes the humor, which should be sharp but cunning, never the obvious punchline that you might see online or hear tossed out in the office kitchen.

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