01 a. Dexterous in performing an action, so as to escape notice; nimble; skillful; cautious; shrewd; knowing; -- in a good sense.
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1.
Dexterous in performing an action, so as to escape notice; nimble; skillful; cautious; shrewd; knowing; -- in a good sense.“Be ye sly as serpents, and simple as doves.” — Wyclif (Matt. x. 16).“Whom graver age And long experience hath made wise and sly.” — Fairfax.
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2.
Artfully cunning; secretly mischievous; wily.“For my sly wiles and subtle craftiness, The litle of the kingdom I possess.” — Spenser.
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3.
Done with, and marked by, artful and dexterous secrecy; subtle; as, a sly trick.“Envy works in a sly and imperceptible manner.” — I. Watts.
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4.
Light or delicate; slight; thin.[Obs.]
Phrases & compounds
By the sly —
in a sly or secret manner.
Sly goose —
the common sheldrake; -- so named from its craftiness.