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Synonyms

chicanery

American  
[shi-key-nuh-ree, chi-] / ʃɪˈkeɪ nə ri, tʃɪ- /

noun

plural

chicaneries

  1. trickery or deception by quibbling or sophistry.

    He resorted to the worst flattery and chicanery to win the job.
    Synonyms:
    knavery, deception, fraud

  2. a quibble or subterfuge used to trick, deceive, or evade.

    Synonyms:
    evasion
chicanery British  
/ ʃɪˈkeɪnərɪ /

noun

  1. verbal deception or trickery, esp in legal quibbling; dishonest or sharp practice

  2. a trick, deception, or quibble

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of chicanery

From the French word chicanerie, dating back to 1605–15. See chicane, -ery

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.

“This sort of chicanery has been going on since at least the ’90s,” he says.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 12, 2026

Did he feel he needed to shake up his players by warning them of supposed chicanery?

From BBC • Mar. 7, 2026

That said, there are plenty of reasons — none involving any kind of partisan chicanery — that explain why California elections seems to drag on and vote totals shift as ballots are steadily counted.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 11, 2026

You can go on with your life free of other people’s chicanery and hopefully enjoy the last days of 2025 without being caught up in a “L’Affaire du Vin Manquant.”

From MarketWatch • Dec. 24, 2025

Sometimes a little subterfuge and chicanery is in order and the quickest way to achieve one’s goal.

From "Dread Nation" by Justina Ireland

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.