outwit
Americanverb (used with object)
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outwits,
present (3rd person singular)
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outwitted,
past participle, past
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outwitting
present participle
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to get the better of by superior ingenuity or cleverness; outsmart.
to outwit a dangerous opponent.
- Synonyms:
- finesse, outthink, outmaneuver, outfox, outguess
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Archaic. to surpass in wisdom or knowledge.
verb
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to get the better of by cunning or ingenuity
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archaic to be of greater intelligence than
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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outwitsimple
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outwitssimple
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have outwittedperfect
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has outwittedperfect
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am outwittingprogressive
-
are outwittingprogressive
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is outwittingprogressive
-
have been outwittingperfect progressive
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has been outwittingperfect progressive
Past
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outwittedsimple
-
had outwittedperfect
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was outwittingprogressive
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were outwittingprogressive
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had been outwittingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of outwit
Explanation
Use the verb outwit to describe using your brain to beat an opponent, like outwitting someone by figuring out the answer to a difficult riddle. Wit comes from the Old English word witan, which means "to know." So someone who outwits another person knows more — or at least knows more than the person thought. You can outwit someone with clever words, or with craftiness on the playing field. An unexpected strategy can help one side outwit the other on the battlefield.
Vocabulary lists containing outwit
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Now, thanks to some startling revelations about AI agents collaborating deceptively to outwit their human overlords, doomers are ascendant.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
Watch as the fluid camerawork makes her kills look nastier, and the preposterous script allows her to outwit her foes, even with the cards stacked against her at every turn.
From Salon ● Mar. 29, 2026
Liz is a compelling creation, at once smart, sassy and wily, and there is fun to be had watching her slickly outwit credulous individuals.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 21, 2025
A few months later, she was sent off for Land Girl training, where Ron visited her and sent her coded letters in an attempt to outwit her mother.
From BBC ● Nov. 11, 2024
Also, I prided myself on the fact that I already knew how to outwit him.
From "The Fire Next Time" by James Baldwin
He shot to fame in a popular television series “Servant of the People” in which he played an honest school teacher who is elected president and outwits crooked lawmakers and shadowy businessmen.
From Reuters ● Feb. 24, 2022
The much-loved story tells the tale of wily Mr Fox, who outwits farmers Boggis, Bunce and Bean.
From BBC ● Apr. 8, 2021
Like “Figaro,” “La Scuola” is a lyrical comedy involving jealous lovers of various classes, including a countess who outwits her philandering count.
From The New Yorker ● May 27, 2019
The Doctor outwits enemies and is dedicated to maintaining cosmic equilibrium.
From Salon ● Oct. 3, 2018
She turned her head to look at Ash and added, “She even outwits the Fairy Queen.”
From "Ash" by Malinda Lo
For many, today's hardships only serve to highlight the absence of a leader who died a decade ago and is still seen as the wiley strategist who outwitted his American foes.
From Barron's ● Aug. 13, 2026
Peter Pomerantsev’s “How to Win an Information War” tells the story of Sefton Delmer, “the propagandist who outwitted Hitler.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
The story of the extraordinary rise to power of the man who runs Saudi Arabia and whose control of oil affects everyone, starting with how he outwitted hundreds of rivals to become crown prince.
From BBC ● Aug. 19, 2024
Early cancer vaccine research faltered as cancer outwitted and outlasted patients’ weak immune systems, said Olja Finn, a vaccine researcher at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.
From Washington Times ● Jun. 26, 2023
Ky Ebright, it seemed, had somehow outwitted him again.
From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown
The market they created was basically a bunch of guys trading stuff and trying to make money by outwitting each other in their private marketplace.
From Salon ● Jan. 28, 2025
Good news for those of us still seething over NBC’s 2012 cancellation of “Harry’s Law”: Kathy Bates is once again outwitting opposing counsel and her own colleagues in the upcoming “Matlock” from CBS.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 5, 2024
Blackburn were eager not to become a plotline in future 'Welcome to Wrexham' episodes and quickly took control of the game, outwitting their opponents with slick passing and sharp movement to create several chances.
From BBC ● Jan. 29, 2024
Bletchley Park’s most famous feat was outwitting Germany’s Enigma encryption machine, which produced a constantly changing cipher and was widely considered unbreakable.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 31, 2023
She was much sweeter when she thought she was outwitting him.
From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
