variants
also cagy
1
as in slick
clever at attaining one's ends by indirect and often deceptive means
a cagey old politician who is exceptionally skilled at getting federal money for his district
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in hesitant
slow to begin or proceed with a course of action because of doubts or uncertainty
when it came time to sign the contract, he suddenly got cagey about taking on the job
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Recent Examples of cagey
Biden and Clyburn have been longtime friends, but Clyburn stayed cagey in the days leading up to his endorsement announcement.
—
David Jackson, USA TODAY, 26 Feb. 2020
The Schuyler sisters provide the most beautiful voices in the production, with Krystal Joy Brown offering a poignant Eliza, and Mandy Gonzalez a smart and cagey Angelica.
—Kyle Smith, National Review, 10 Feb. 2020
Cote and Mark were pretty cagey when asked if Michael will be back.
—Megan Stein, Country Living, 7 Jan. 2020
Quarterback Drew Lock looked like a cagey veteran and not a first-time NFL road starter, completing 22 of his 27 attempts for 309 yards and three touchdowns.
—Ryan O’Halloran, The Denver Post, 8 Dec. 2019
See all Example Sentences for cagey 
David Jackson, USA TODAY, 26 Feb. 2020
The Schuyler sisters provide the most beautiful voices in the production, with Krystal Joy Brown offering a poignant Eliza, and Mandy Gonzalez a smart and cagey Angelica.
—Kyle Smith, National Review, 10 Feb. 2020
Cote and Mark were pretty cagey when asked if Michael will be back.
—Megan Stein, Country Living, 7 Jan. 2020
Quarterback Drew Lock looked like a cagey veteran and not a first-time NFL road starter, completing 22 of his 27 attempts for 309 yards and three touchdowns.
—Ryan O’Halloran, The Denver Post, 8 Dec. 2019
See all Example Sentences for cagey
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cagey
Adjective
-
Watch out for slippery roads: The initial half-hour of rain is when roads are slickest due to a mixture of rain, grime, and oil.—
Bay Area Weather Report,
The Mercury News,
15 Feb. 2025
-
Women are under all kinds of other pressures in the age of Instagram to be perfectly slick and tidy and on time and all this other stuff.—
Alex Ritman,
Variety,
14 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Backyard Sports has never featured loot boxes or microtransactions, and locking a character like Pablo Sanchez behind an additional paywall would spark a fan revolt, causing parents to be hesitant to support the games.—
Jake Lang,
Rolling Stone,
7 Feb. 2025
-
Initially, the Warriors were hesitant to trade for Butler.—
The Athletic NBA Staff,
The Athletic,
6 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Another male ally to the women’s crimes is Walter (Elijah Wood), a fellow citizen detective of Misty’s who uses his wealth and cunning to bury Shauna’s murder case once and for all.—
Proma Khosla,
IndieWire,
12 Feb. 2025
-
China has been especially cunning in building influence among developing countries.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
7 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
But there is still hope among nine-game advocates that television money will come through and move the reluctant to agree to expand.—
The Athletic College Football,
The Athletic,
17 Feb. 2025
-
That reluctant to juice demand is exemplified by a wide gap in fiscal policies, namely the willingness to spend more than what comes in from tax revenue.—
BYJason Ma,
Fortune,
16 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Jang Theo was incredibly head over heels for her and showered her with gifts and cute gestures.—
Lea Veloso,
StyleCaster,
11 Feb. 2025
-
Her younger sister Rumi (who happens to be one half of a twin) matched her fly, wearing a black and white Amiri varsity jacket, light wash blue jeans, and Amiri’s cute Ma Canvas camera case.—
Elizabeth Ayoola,
Essence,
10 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Vaccine backers are dubious that Cassidy will have much influence over Kennedy if he is confirmed as secretary of Health and Human Services.—
Karen Kaplan,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Feb. 2025
-
Previously, the 2008 Sayre Fire in Sylmar that destroyed 604 structures held that dubious distinction.—
Denise Petski,
Deadline,
4 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Because of the ferrets’ long, slim shape and the necessity of not making the collars too tight, the wily animals can slip out of the trackers, Boulerice said.—
Dinah Voyles Pulver,
USA TODAY,
14 Feb. 2025
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The defense has also vastly improved under the wily Fangio, finishing with the best unit in the NFL.—
Ben Morse,
CNN,
8 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
As the emerging metropolis began to overtake San Francisco as the most populated city in the West, shrewd real estate developers began to cast their eyes up to the foothills of the Santa Monica and San Gabriel mountains.—
Jenny Jarvie,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Feb. 2025
-
Mayberry: Golden State snagging Jimmy Butler was a shrewd move.—
J. Robbins, J. Edwards and D. Mayberry,
The Athletic,
8 Feb. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near cagey
Cite this Entry
“Cagey.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cagey. Accessed 21 Feb. 2025.
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