cunning

adj.

1. Marked by or given to artful subtlety and deceptiveness.
2. Executed with or exhibiting ingenuity.
3. Delicately pleasing; pretty or cute: a cunning pet.

n.

1. Skill in deception; guile.
2. Skill or adeptness in execution or performance; dexterity.

[Middle English, present participle of connen, to know, from Old English cunnan.]

cunningly cun'ning·ly adv.
cunningness cun'ning·ness n.

adjective

Deceitfully clever: artful, crafty, foxy, guileful, scheming, sharp, sly, tricky, wily. See ability/inability, honest/dishonest, means.

noun

1. Deceitful cleverness: art, artfulness, artifice, craft, craftiness, foxiness, guile, slyness, wiliness. See honest/dishonest, means.
2. The act or practice of deceiving: deceit, deceitfulness, deception, double-dealing, duplicity, guile, shiftiness. See honest/dishonest.

adj

Definition: devious
Antonyms: gullible, kind, naive, shy

adj

Definition: imaginative
Antonyms: unclever, unimaginative

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In addition to normal usage implying "crafty," cunning has an ancient meaning of "skillful" or "wise," especially when applied to occult or magic knowledge. The Anglo-Saxon term wortcunning means a knowledge of the medical and occult properties of plants (wort) and was applied to herbalists. In the course of time, the term cunning-man or cunning-woman was applied to so-called white witches, who practiced simple spells and claimed to discover those putting "the evil eye" on cattle, and who also cured ailments by herbs and magic practices.

Sources:

Cockayne, T. O., ed. Leechdoms, Wortcunning, & Starcraft. 2 vols. London: Longman, Green, 1864-66. Reprint, N.p., 1968.

IN BRIEF: Skillful and clever at getting what one wants.

From a dog's point of view his master is an elongated and abnormally cunning dog. — Mabel L. Robinson.

Quotes:

"The weak in courage is strong in cunning." - William Blake

"With foxes we must play the fox." - Thomas Fuller

"Simulated disorder postulates perfect discipline; simulated fear postulates courage; simulated weakness postulates strength." - Lao-Tzu

"The fly that does not want to be swatted is safest if it sits on the fly-swat." - Georg C. Lichtenberg

"The greatest cunning is to have none at all." - Carl Sandburg

Dansk (Danish)
adj. - snu, snild, pudsig, kær
n. - listighed, snilde

Nederlands (Dutch)
sluwheid, doortraptheid, vaardigheid, schattig, doortrapt, uitgekookt

Français (French)
adj. - rusé, fourbe, habile (tour, complot), astucieux (moyen)
n. - ruse, fourberie

Deutsch (German)
n. - Schlauheit, Gerissenheit, Geschick
adj. - schlau, gerissen

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - δεξιοτεχνία, μαστοριά, πανουργία, πονηριά
adj. - δεξιοτέχνης, πανούργος, πονηρός, δεξιοτεχνικός

Italiano (Italian)
scaltrezza, astuzia, furberia, furbo, astuto, scaltro

Português (Portuguese)
n. - astúcia (f), habilidade (f)
adj. - hábil, gracioso, dissimulado

Русский (Russian)
ловкий, хитрый, симпатичный, ловкость

Español (Spanish)
adj. - astuto, taimado, ingenioso
n. - astucia, ingenio

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - slughet, skicklighet (åld.)
adj. - slug, söt (vard. am.)

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
狡猾的, 可爱的, 巧妙的, 狡猾, 奸诈, 灵巧, 熟练

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
adj. - 狡猾的, 可愛的, 巧妙的
n. - 狡猾, 奸詐, 靈巧, 熟練

한국어 (Korean)
adj. - 잘된, 약삭빠른, 귀여운
n. - 솜씨가 교묘함, 교활

日本語 (Japanese)
adj. - ずるい, 悪賢い, かわいらしい
n. - 悪賢さ

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) دها, مكر, مهارة (صفه) ماكر, شاطر, داهيه, حيال‏

עברית (Hebrew)
adj. - ‮ערום, פיקח, חמוד‬
n. - ‮כשרון, ערמומיות‬

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