sly
adjective
[ slʌɪ ]
• having or showing a cunning and deceitful nature.
• "a sly, manipulative woman"
Similar:
cunning,
crafty,
clever,
wily,
artful,
guileful,
tricky,
conniving,
scheming,
devious,
designing,
deceitful,
duplicitous,
dishonest,
disingenuous,
underhand,
sneaky,
untrustworthy,
manipulative,
calculating,
Machiavellian,
foxy,
shifty,
fly,
shonky,
slim,
subtle,
carny,
Origin:
Middle English (also in the sense ‘dexterous’): from Old Norse slœgr ‘cunning’, originally ‘able to strike’ from the verb slá ; compare with sleight.
on the sly
• in a secretive fashion.
• "she was drinking on the sly"
Similar:
in secret,
secretly,
furtively,
stealthily,
sneakily,
slyly,
surreptitiously,
covertly,
clandestinely,
on the quiet,
on the side,
behind someone's back,
under cover,
under the counter,
on the q.t.,
