dodgy
Americanadjective
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inclined to dodge.
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evasively tricky.
a dodgy manner of dealing with people.
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Chiefly British. risky; hazardous; chancy.
adjective
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risky, difficult, or dangerous
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uncertain or unreliable; tricky
Etymology
Origin of dodgy
Explanation
A dodgy situation is risky and suspicious. A dodgy person is skilled in lying and deceiving. Neither should be trusted. When a person or situation is called dodgy, it's a clue that they should be dodged if at all possible. A job might be dodgy because it's illegal or dangerous. A shortcut might be dodgy if it could damage your car. Running a marathon without preparation is very dodgy. Similarly, a dodgy person is untrustworthy because they’re evasive, cunning, sly, or just a flat-out liar.
Vocabulary lists containing dodgy
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
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Never Let Me Go
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Wicked Ways: words for winning at all costs
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Dodgy CGI, especially for the animals, and obvious green-screen inserts also show the seams on this project.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 12, 2024
Dodgy forensics contribute to nearly half of all wrongful convictions there, according to the Innocence Project, a New York-based charity dedicated to overturning miscarriages of justice.
From Economist • Jul. 16, 2015
Dodgy dealers Del Boy and Rodney Trotter are to return to British TV screens for the first time in more than 10 years, the BBC has confirmed.
From BBC • Jan. 4, 2014
Among them were Dodgy, the recently reformed trio, whose biggest hit was Staying Out for the Summer, the song that commenced the TV coverage of a sun-baked Glastonbury in 1995.
From The Guardian • Jun. 18, 2013
Dodgy looked a bit tottery, but 'e was game all through and very careful, and, try as Bill might, he didn't seem to be able to get 'old of 'im agin.
From Light Freights by Jacobs, W. W. (William Wymark)
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
