designing

American  

[dih-zahy-ning] / dɪˈzaɪ nɪŋ /

adjective

1. scheming; intriguing; artful; crafty.

   Synonyms:

   sly, tricky, cunning, wily

2. showing or using forethought.

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noun

1. the act or art of making designs.

designing British  

/ dɪˈzaɪnɪŋ /

adjective

1. artful and scheming; conniving; crafty

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Other Word Forms

• designingly adverb
• well-designing adjective

Etymology

Origin of designing

First recorded in 1610–20; design + -ing ², -ing ¹

Explanation

The adjective designing describes those who secretly scheme to get what they want, even if it means cheating others, like the designing group member who tricks everyone else into doing all the work for their shared project. You might incorrectly assume designing means "creative," in the sense of a fashion designer, but instead of beautiful clothing, the designing person dreams only of his or her own best interests — before anyone else's. Someone who’s designing plans ahead to make sure things go his way, even if it means lying or making other people look bad. A good synonym for designing is scheming.

Example Sentences

Marvell’s business designing custom AI chips —called application-specific integrated circuits, or ASICs—has been the focus of investors in recent years.

From Barron's • Apr. 9, 2026

That’s why discussions about where “Hello Girls” would land began very early in the process of designing the new building, said Rower, adding that he even addressed the matter with architect Peter Zumthor.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 8, 2026

Future progress will likely depend on reducing noise or designing circuits that can function effectively despite it.

From Science Daily • Apr. 6, 2026

It plans this year to give more potential customers the information and tools they need to start designing the chips they want Rapidus to make one day.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 4, 2026

The last I heard, she’d branched over into designing her own Christmas cards.

From "Nine Stories" by J. D. Salinger