June 29, 2026
guile
/ɡʌɪl/noun
Cleverness used to trick or deceive people.
Example sentences
- “The salesman used a bit of guile to close the deal.”
- “The fox in the story uses guile to steal the farmer's chickens.”
Most often met in the negative: 'without guile' is high praise for honesty. Related to 'beguile', which kept the charm and dropped most of the menace.