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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

I was trying to find ways to address it — how proud Africans were in Brazil, and how that works as a shield against the more devious side of Brazilian culture.

From Salon • Jul. 29, 2020

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

Whatever she was plotting, it was a whole lot more devious than I had given her credit for.

From "The Wednesday Wars" by Gary D. Schmidt