bad faith
Americannoun
noun
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intention to deceive; treachery or dishonesty (esp in the phrase in bad faith )
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Also called: mauvaise foi. (in the philosophy of the 20th-century French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre) self-deception, as when an agent regards his actions as conditioned by circumstances or conventions in order to evade his own responsibility for choosing them freely
Other Word Forms
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.
"There is no evidence of bad faith, malice, corruption, fraud, partiality, or any want of integrity on the part of Referee Mark Lyson," the commission added.
From BBC ● Jun. 18, 2026
She’s aware she’s being betrayed by the bad faith of her family; she’s cognizant of being vulnerable to an inappropriate affection for the one person who trusts her.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 9, 2026
The FDA further showed its bad faith by leaking the rejection letter to the press.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 14, 2026
Among its accusations, the labor organization also alleged that guild management has “surveilled workers for union activity, terminated union supporters, and engaged in bad faith surface bargaining.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 25, 2026
Already in there you can see the consciousness of how damaging he regards the appearance of bad faith, and how penetrat- ingly the orator is exposed to his audience.
From "Words Like Loaded Pistols" by Sam Leith
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.
