Synonyms Examples Word Origin
See more synonyms for wile on Thesaurus.com a trick, artifice, or stratagem meant to fool, trap, or entice; device. wiles, artful or beguiling behavior. deceitful cunning; trickery. Show More
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. Show More
wile away , to spend or pass (time), especially in a leisurely or pleasurable fashion: to wile away the long winter nights. Show More
Origin of wile 1125–75; (noun) Middle English; late Old English wil, perhaps < Old Norse vēl artifice, earlier *wihl-
Related forms out·wile , verb (used with object), out·wiled, out·wil·ing. Can be confused while wile Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words for wiles stratagem ,
guile ,
artfulness ,
scam ,
twist ,
device ,
artifice ,
racket ,
gimmick ,
fraud ,
plot ,
cheating ,
deception ,
trickery ,
dishonesty ,
ploy ,
dodge ,
maneuver ,
lure ,
slant Examples from the Web for wiles Contemporary Examples of wiles Wiles initially denied that he had performed as Mona Sinclair to the Winston-Salem Journal before eventually coming clean.
Eventually though, Wiles was suspended for "conduct unbecoming to a Promoter of the Miss Gay America pageant system."
For Wiles , appearing in Web series has been an enriching experience.
In the race to snatch children from the tightening noose around the Warsaw ghetto, she must use all her wiles .
The neocons and their allies have lost their administration but not their agenda or their wiles .
Historical Examples of wiles Al. “Hud a phyd,” “The valour of the forward Elphin had recourse to wiles and stratagems.”
But with the captain her wiles were not so readily successful.
Who ever equalled us in all the wiles and schemes of mankind?
She has wiles and ways which, with her beauty, make her nigh irresistible.'
But for her and her wiles I had never been married to your father!
British Dictionary definitions for wiles trickery, cunning, or craftiness (usually plural) an artful or seductive trick or ploy Show More
(tr) to lure, beguile, or entice Show More
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
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for wiles n. 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.
Show More
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
