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Synonyms for cunning
adj devious

knowing
acute
smarts
smooth
slick
deep
keen
Machiavellian

sharp
smart
artful
astute
cagey
canny
crafty
foxy

insidious
shifty
shrewd
slippery
sly
street-smart
subtle
tricky

wary
wily
guileful
crazy like fox
fancy footwork
sly boots
streetwise

Antonyms for cunning

stupid
unintelligent
ignorant
aboveboard
gullible
kind

naive
unimaginative
obtuse
slow
blunt
dull

coarse
rough
unstylish
shy
unclever

Synonyms
adj imaginative

crackerjack
smooth
smart
able
adroit

canny
clever
deft
dexterous
ingenious

intelligent
masterful
skillful
sly
subtle

slighty
well-laid
well-planned

Antonyms

gullible
kind

naive
unimaginative

shy
unclever

Usage Notes

Can1 and may1 are frequently but not always interchangeable in senses indicating possibility: A power failure can (or may) occur at any time. Despite the insistence by some, that can means only “to be able” and may means “to be permitted,” both are regularly used in seeking or granting permission: Can (or May) I borrow your tape recorder? You can (or may) use it tomorrow. Sentences using can occur chiefly in spoken English. May in this sense occurs more frequently in formal contexts: May I address the court, Your Honor? In negative constructions, can’t or cannot is more common than may not: You can’t have it today. I need it myself. The contraction mayn’t is rare. Can but and cannot but are formal and now somewhat old-fashioned expressions suggesting that there is no possible alternative to doing something. Can but is equivalent to can only: We can but do our best. Cannot but is the equivalent of cannot help but: We cannot but protest against these injustices. See also cannot, help.
Concept Thesaurus for word cunning
2. Complex voluntary action
Synonyms – noun

cunning
subtlety
circumvention.
knavery
foul play.
jobbery
device
stratagem
trick, trickery (deception)
side blow
subterfuge
tour de force
net, trap
sly dog
Artful Dodger [Dickens]
intriguer

craft
artificiality
chicane
jugglery
diplomacy
backstairs influence.
machination
dodge
ruse
thin end of the wedge
evasion
tricks of the trade
Ulysses
fox
smooth operator
intrigant

cunningness
maneuvering
chicanery
concealment
politics
art
plot (plan)
artful dodge
ruse de guerre
shift
white lie (untruth)
tricks upon travelers
Machiavel
reynard
sweet talker
spin doctor

craftiness
temporization
sharp practice
guile, doubling, duplicity (falsehood)
Machiavelism
artifice
maneuver
wile
finesse
go by
juggle
espieglerie
sly boots
dodger
Yankee
schemer [more]

Synonyms – verbs

be cunning
maneuver
double
circumvent
surprise
introduce the thin end of the wedge
flatter

have cut one’s eyeteeth
intrigue
temporize
steal a march upon
snatch a verdict
play a deep game
make things pleasant

contrive (plan)
gerrymander
stoop to conquer
overreach
waylay
play tricks with
have an ax to grind.

live by one’s wits
finesse
reculer pour mieux sauter
throw off one’s guard
undermine
ambiguas in vulgum spargere voces

Synonyms – adjectives

cunning
subtle
cunning as a serpent
designing
diplomatic
artificial
sly
underhand (hidden)
arch
sharp
leery
not to be caught with chaff.

crafty
feline
deep
contriving
politic
tricky
slim
subdolous
pawky
sharp as a needle
knowing

artful
vulpine
deep laid
intriguing
Machiavelian
tricksy
insidious
deceitful
shrewd
canny
up to snuff

skillful
cunning as a fox
profound
strategic
timeserving
wily
stealthy
crooked
acute
astute
too clever by half

Synonyms – phrases
diamond cut diamond; a’ bis ou a blanc; fin contre fin; “something is rotten in the state of Denmark” [Hamlet].
Antonyms

artlessness

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