wheedle means A coaxing person. Lexicurio rates it Rare gem — a strength score of 74 out of 100.
wheedle is pronounced /ˈʍiː.dəl/.
Why “wheedle” is a great word
WHEEDLE — [Verb] To obtain something or persuade someone by means of artful flattery, coaxing, or beguiling charm. Origin uncertain. Two main theories exist: 1) Possibly from Middle English wedlen ("to beg, ask for alms"), from Old English wǣdlian ("to be poor, be needy, beg"), from Proto-Germanic *wēþlōną ("to be in need"). 2) Alternatively, perhaps borrowed from German wedeln ("to wag one's tail"), from Middle High German wedelen, related to the notion of a fawning dog. First recorded in English use circa 1655–1661. Unlike coerce, which threatens with force, or cajole, which employs sustained, playful pressure, to wheedle is to apply the soft, persistent tool of calculated praise. It is the child's honeyed voice before a request for sweets, the sycophant's murmured compliments while angling for a favor, the practiced tail-wag of submission disguising a specific want—a minor art of manipulation that trades on the universal hunger to be thought well of, proving the gentlest persistence can be the most corrosive.
Etymology
Uncertain. Perhaps continuing Middle English wedlen (“to beg, ask for alms”), from Old English wǣdlian (“to be poor, be needy, be in want, beg”), from Proto-Germanic *wēþlōną (“to be in need”).
Alternatively , borrowed from German wedeln (“to wag one's tail”), from Middle High German wedelen, a byform of Middle High German wadelen (“to wander, waver, wave, whip, stroke, flutter”), from Old High German wādalōn (“to wander, roam, rove”). In this case, it may be a doublet of waddle, or an independently formed etymological equivalent.
The ⟨wh⟩ spelling (reflecting pronunciations with /ʍ/) is apparently unetymological.
verb
- To cajole or attempt to persuade by flattery.“I’d like one of those, too, if you can wheedle him into telling you where he got it.”
- To obtain by flattery, guile, or trickery.“If the worſt come to the worſt,—I'll turn my Wife to Graſs—I already have a deed of Settlement of the beſt part of her Eſtate; which I wheadl'd out of her; [...]”