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more devious

ADJECTIVE

dishonest, crafty

Synonyms

STRONGEST

calculating deceitful duplicitous fraudulent insidious insincere shrewd sly sneaky underhanded wily

WEAK

artful crooked double-dealing errant erring evasive faking one out fishy foxy guileful indirect not straightforward oblique obliquitous playing games playing politics put on roundabout scheming shady shifty sneaking surreptitious treacherous tricky

Antonyms

STRONGEST

fair forthright frank honest naive open sincere

WEAK

artless direct straight straightforward trustworthy truthful

ADJECTIVE

crooked; indirect

Synonyms

STRONGEST

circuitous misleading

WEAK

ambiguous bending confounding confusing curving detouring deviating digressing digressory diverting errant erratic excursive flexuous obscure out-of-the-way rambling remote removed roundabout serpentine straying tortuous twisting wandering

Antonyms

WEAK

artless direct frank honest open straight straightforward trustworthy truthful

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The player gets played only when Dawson is challenged by a trickster even more devious than her.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 25, 2025

She casually schemes to win a coveted Ivy League recommendation, only to find herself outmaneuvered by an even more devious and entitled senior.

From Seattle Times • Aug. 18, 2022

Or will his oddball behavior take a more devious turn?

From Salon • Jan. 15, 2022

Here’s a question most anyone who learns I am researching confidence artists asks me: Are con artists clinical psychopaths—or are they just slightly more devious versions of our more conniving selves?

From Slate • Feb. 22, 2016

But Mollie’s diabetes seemed to have provided an even more devious way to deliver the poison.

From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann