'Sly' definitions:
Definition of 'sly'
From: WordNet
Definition of 'Sly'
From: GCIDE
- Sly \Sly\, a. [Compar. Slieror Slyer; superl. Sliest or Slyest.] [OE. sli, slegh, sleih, Icel. sl?gr, for sl?gr; akin to Sw. slug, Dan. slu, LG. slou, G. schlau; probably to E. slay, v.t.; cf. G. verschlagen sly. See Slay, v. t., and cf. Sleight.]
- 1. Dexterous in performing an action, so as to escape notice; nimble; skillful; cautious; shrewd; knowing; -- in a good sense. [1913 Webster]
- Be ye sly as serpents, and simple as doves. --Wyclif (Matt. x. 16). [1913 Webster]
- Whom graver age And long experience hath made wise and sly. --Fairfax. [1913 Webster]
- 2. Artfully cunning; secretly mischievous; wily. [1913 Webster]
- For my sly wiles and subtle craftiness, The litle of the kingdom I possess. --Spenser. [1913 Webster]
- 3. Done with, and marked by, artful and dexterous secrecy; subtle; as, a sly trick. [1913 Webster]
- Envy works in a sly and imperceptible manner. --I. Watts. [1913 Webster]
- 4. Light or delicate; slight; thin. [Obs.] [1913 Webster]
- By the sly, or On the sly, in a sly or secret manner. [Colloq.] "Gazed on Hetty's charms by the sly." --G. Eliot.
- Sly goose (Zool.), the common sheldrake; -- so named from its craftiness. [1913 Webster]
- Syn: Cunning; crafty; subtile; wily. See Cunning. [1913 Webster]
Definition of 'Sly'
From: GCIDE
- Sly \Sly\, adv. Slyly. [Obs. or Poetic] --Spenser. [1913 Webster]
Synonyms of 'sly'
From: Moby Thesaurus
- acute,
- adroit,
- arch,
- artful,
- astute,
- back-door,
- backstairs,
- Byzantine,
- cagey,
- calculating,
- canny,
- clandestine,
- clever,
- covert,
- crafty,
- creep,
- crooked,
- cunning,
- cute,
- deceitful,
- deep,
- deep-laid,
- designing,
- devious,
- dexterous,
- diplomatic,
- dishonest,
- disingenuous,
- downy,
- feline,
- foxy,
- furtive,
- guileful,
- gumshoe,
- hidlings,
- hole-and-corner,
- hugger-mugger,
- ingenious,
- insidious,
- inventive,
- knowing,
- lurk,
- Machiavellian,
- Machiavellic,
- masterful,
- pawky,
- politic,
- predatory,
- privy,
- quiet,
- ready,
- resourceful,
- scheming,
- serpentine,
- shady,
- sharp,
- shifty,
- shrewd,
- skulk,
- skulking,
- slick,
- slide,
- slim,
- slink,
- slinking,
- slinky,
- slippery,
- smart,
- smooth,
- snake,
- snaky,
- sneaking,
- sneaky,
- snook,
- sophistical,
- steal,
- stealthy,
- strategic,
- subtile,
- subtle,
- supple,
- surreptitious,
- tactical,
- trickish,
- tricksy,
- tricky,
- under-the-counter,
- under-the-table,
- undercover,
- underground,
- underhand,
- underhanded,
- unfrank,
- unobtrusive,
- unscrupulous,
- vulpine,
- wary,
- wily