sly

sly
\ \ [12] Etymologically, sly means ‘able to hit’. It was borrowed from Old Norse slǣgrclever, cunning’, which went back ultimately to the prehistoric Germanic base *slakh-, *slag-, *slōg- ‘hit’ (source also of English slaughter, slay, etc). The word’s original approbatory connotations of ‘cleverness’ or ‘skill’ survived into the 20th century in northern dialects, but elsewhere they were soon ousted by the notion of ‘underhandedness’. More neutral associations linger on in sleightdexterity’ [13] (as in ‘sleight of hand’), which was acquired from an Old Norse derivative of slǣgr.
\ \ Cf.SLAUGHTER, SLAY, SLEIGHT

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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  • Sly — Sly, a. [Compar. {Slier}or {Slyer}; superl. {Sliest} or {Slyest}.] [OE. sli, slegh, sleih, Icel. sl?gr, for sl?gr; akin to Sw. slug, Dan. slu, LG. slou, G. schlau; probably to E. slay, v.t.; cf. G. verschlagen sly. See {Slay}, v. t., and cf.… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Sly — is an adjective, meaning one of the following:#Clever in practical matters. #Hiding ones true intentions or goals.Its synonyms are cunning and roguish .Sly is also a proper masculine name, short for Sylvester. It is the name of several famous… …   Wikipedia

  • sly — sly, cunning, crafty, tricky, foxy, insidious, wily, guileful, artful are comparable when they mean having or showing a disposition to attain one s ends by devious or indirect means. Sly implies a lack of candor which shows itself in… …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • sly — [ slaı ] adjective 1. ) clever at tricking people or at secretly doing unfair or dishonest things 2. ) a sly smile, look, or remark shows that the person doing it knows something that other people do not know: He made a sly reference to the… …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • sly — [slaı] adj [Date: 1200 1300; : Old Norse; Origin: slœgr] 1.) someone who is sly cleverly deceives people in order to get what they want = ↑cunning 2.) sly smile/glance/wink etc a smile, look etc that shows you know something secret ▪ He leaned… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • sly — c.1200, from O.N. sloegr cunning, crafty, sly, from P.Gmc. *slogis (Cf. Low Ger. slu cunning, sly ), probably from base *slog hit (see SLAY (Cf. slay)), with an original notion of able to hit. Cf. Ger. verschlagen cunning, crafty, sly,… …   Etymology dictionary

  • sly — [slī] adj. slier or slyer, sliest or slyest [ME sley < ON slœgr, clever, cunning, lit., able to strike < base of slā & OE slean, to strike: see SLAY] 1. Dial. skillful or clever 2. skillful at trickery or deceit; crafty; wily 3. showing a… …   English World dictionary

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  • sly — ► ADJECTIVE (slyer, slyest) 1) having a cunning and deceitful nature. 2) (of a remark, glance, or expression) insinuating. 3) (of an action) surreptitious. ● on the sly Cf. ↑on the sly …   English terms dictionary

  • sly|ly — «SLY lee», adverb. in a sly manner; secretly. Also, slily …   Useful english dictionary

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