crafty

adjective

ˈkraf-tē How to pronounce crafty (audio)
craftier; craftiest
Synonyms of crafty
1
: skillful, clever
2
a
: adept in the use of subtlety and cunning
a crafty swindler
The crafty detective got the suspect to confess to the crime.
b
: marked by subtlety and guile
a crafty scheme
craftily
ˈkraf-tə-lē How to pronounce crafty (audio)
adverb
craftiness
ˈkraf-tē-nəs How to pronounce crafty (audio)
noun

Synonyms of crafty

Relevance
See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus
Choose the Right Synonym for crafty

sly, cunning, crafty, wily, tricky, foxy, artful, slick mean attaining or seeking to attain one's ends by guileful or devious means.

sly implies furtiveness, lack of candor, and skill in concealing one's aims and methods.

a sly corporate raider

cunning suggests the inventive use of sometimes limited intelligence in overreaching or circumventing.

the cunning fox avoided the trap

crafty implies cleverness and subtlety of method.

a crafty lefthander

wily implies skill and deception in maneuvering.

the wily fugitive escaped the posse

tricky is more likely to suggest shiftiness and unreliability than skill in deception and maneuvering.

a tricky political operative

foxy implies a shrewd and wary craftiness usually involving devious dealing.

a foxy publicity man planting stories

artful implies indirectness in dealing and often connotes sophistication or cleverness.

elicited the information by artful questioning

slick emphasizes smoothness and guile.

slick operators selling time-sharing

Examples of crafty in a Sentence

a crafty real estate broker who got people to sell their property at bargain prices
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
These writers saw themselves as craftsmen and their field as closed to outsiders; at the Daily Mirror, the standard-bearing populist sheet, the crafty Lamb hadn’t been able to get ahead. — Daniel D'addario, Variety, 26 Aug. 2026 Carroll has been crafty on the base paths, recording 20 steals on 23 attempts. — Data Skrive, New York Times, 26 Aug. 2026 Its storytelling economy is just as crafty, finding splendor with humble tools, and distills Parton’s whole persona into one perfect song. — Los Angeles Times, 25 Aug. 2026 The crafty wolf often relies on gaudy disguises to accomplish his schemes. — Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 24 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for crafty

Word History

Etymology

see craft entry 1

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of crafty was before the 12th century

Phrases Containing crafty

Rhymes for crafty

See All Rhymes for crafty

Browse Nearby Words

craftwork
crafty
crag
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Crafty.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/crafty. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

crafty

adjective
ˈkraf-tē How to pronounce crafty (audio)
craftier; craftiest
: skillful at deceiving others
craftily
-tə-lē How to pronounce crafty (audio)
adverb
craftiness
-tē-nəs How to pronounce crafty (audio)
noun
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Why does English have so many silent letters?

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
skateboard-dog-hat
Wordmaxxing Slang Quiz Give your vocabulary a glow up by getting sendy w...
See All