dirty tricks

plural noun

Informal.

1. Politics.,  unethical or illegal campaign practices or pranks intended to disrupt or sabotage the campaigns of opposing candidates.

2. any similar practices carried out against rival countries or corporations for espionage or commercial purposes.

Other Word Forms

• dirty-trickery noun
• dirty-tricks adjective
• dirty-trickster noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of dirty tricks¹

First recorded in 1970–75

Idioms and Phrases

Undercover or clandestine operations and deceitful stratagems in politics and espionage. For example, This campaign has been dominated by the dirty tricks of both sides. The adjective dirty here is used in the sense of “unethical” or “unfair.” The term originally was applied to covert intelligence operations carried out by the Central Intelligence Agency, whose planning directorate was nicknamed “department of dirty tricks.” It later was extended to underhanded activity intended to undermine political opponents and commercial rivals. [1940s]