All canny synonyms
canΒ·ny
C c adj canny
- ingenious β characterized by cleverness or originality of invention or construction: an ingenious machine.
- cautious β Someone who is cautious acts very carefully in order to avoid possible danger.
- wise β having the power of discerning and judging properly as to what is true or right; possessing discernment, judgment, or discretion.
- sly β cunning or wily: sly as a fox.
- adroit β Someone who is adroit is quick and skilful in their thoughts, behaviour, or actions.
- skillful β having or exercising skill: a skillful juggler.
- shrewd β astute or sharp in practical matters: a shrewd politician.
- frugal β economical in use or expenditure; prudently saving or sparing; not wasteful: What your office needs is a frugal manager who can save you money without resorting to painful cutbacks. Synonyms: thrifty, chary, provident, careful, prudent, penny-wise, scrimping; miserly, Scotch, penny-pinching. Antonyms: wasteful, extravagant, spendthrift, prodigal, profligate.
- discreet β judicious in one's conduct or speech, especially with regard to respecting privacy or maintaining silence about something of a delicate nature; prudent; circumspect.
- cagey β If you say that someone is being cagey about something, you mean that you think they are deliberately not giving you much information or expressing an opinion about it.
- judicious β using or showing judgment as to action or practical expediency; discreet, prudent, or politic: judicious use of one's money.
- subtle β thin, tenuous, or rarefied, as a fluid or an odor.
- prudent β wise or judicious in practical affairs; sagacious; discreet or circumspect; sober.
- intelligent β having good understanding or a high mental capacity; quick to comprehend, as persons or animals: an intelligent student.
- astute β If you describe someone as astute, you think they show an understanding of behaviour and situations, and are skilful at using this knowledge to their own advantage.
- able β Someone who is able is very clever or very good at doing something.
- acute β An acute accent is a symbol that is placed over vowels in some languages in order to indicate how that vowel is pronounced or over one letter in a word to indicate where it is stressed. You refer to a letter with this accent as, for example, e acute. For example, there is an acute accent over the letter 'e' in the French word 'cafΓ©'.
- careful β If you are careful, you give serious attention to what you are doing, in order to avoid harm, damage, or mistakes. If you are careful to do something, you make sure that you do it.
- circumspect β If you are circumspect, you are cautious in what you do and say and do not take risks.
- cunning β Someone who is cunning has the ability to achieve things in a clever way, often by deceiving other people.
- dexterous β Someone who is dexterous is very skilful and clever with their hands.
- foxy β foxlike; cunning or crafty; slyly clever.
- knowing β affecting, implying, or deliberately revealing shrewd knowledge of secret or private information: a knowing glance.
- perspicacious β having keen mental perception and understanding; discerning: to exhibit perspicacious judgment.
- quick β done, proceeding, or occurring with promptness or rapidity, as an action, process, etc.; prompt; immediate: a quick response.
- quick-witted β having a nimble, alert mind.
- sagacious β having or showing acute mental discernment and keen practical sense; shrewd: a sagacious lawyer.
- slick β smooth and glossy; sleek.
- slippery β tending or liable to cause slipping or sliding, as ice, oil, a wet surface, etc.: a slippery road.
- smart β having or showing quick intelligence or ready mental capability: a smart student.
- smooth β free from projections or unevenness of surface; not rough: smooth wood; a smooth road.
- wary β watchful; being on one's guard against danger.
- watchful β vigilant or alert; closely observant: The sentry remained watchful throughout the night.
- with it β (in children's games) the player called upon to perform some task, as, in tag, the one who must catch the other players.
- worldly-wise β wise as to the affairs of this world.
- hep β hip4 .
- streetwise β street-smart.
adjective canny
- clever β Someone who is clever is intelligent and able to understand things easily or plan things well.
- wily β full of, marked by, or proceeding from wiles; crafty; cunning.
- crafty β If you describe someone as crafty, you mean that they achieve what they want in a clever way, often by deceiving people.
- artful β If you describe someone as artful, you mean that they are clever and skilful at achieving what they want, especially by deceiving people.