wile
[ wahyl ]
/ waɪl /
noun
a trick, artifice, or stratagem meant to fool, trap, or entice; device.
wiles, artful or beguiling behavior.
deceitful cunning; trickery.
verb (used with object), wiled, wil·ing.
to beguile, entice, or lure (usually followed by away, from, into, etc.): The music wiled him from his study.
Verb Phrases
wile away, to spend or pass (time), especially in a leisurely or pleasurable fashion: to wile away the long winter nights.
Nearby words
Origin of wile
1125–75; (noun) Middle English; late Old English wil, perhaps < Old Norse vēl artifice, earlier *wihl-
SYNONYMS FOR wile
3 chicanery, fraud.
Related formsout·wile, verb (used with object), out·wiled, out·wil·ing.
Can be confusedwhile wile
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for wile
British Dictionary definitions for wile
wile
/ (waɪl) /
noun
trickery, cunning, or craftiness
(usually plural) an artful or seductive trick or ploy
verb
(tr) to lure, beguile, or entice
Word Origin for wile
C12: from Old Norse vel craft; probably related to Old French wīle, Old English wīgle magic. See guile
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for wile
wile
mid-12c., wil "wile, trick," perhaps from Old North French *wile (Old French guile), or directly from a Scandinavian source (cf. Old Norse vel "trick, craft, fraud," vela "defraud"). Perhaps ultimately related to Old English wicca "wizard" (see Wicca). Lighter sense of "amorous or playful trick" is from c.1600. Wily is attested from c.1300.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper