tamper with
Idioms-
Interfere or meddle, especially in a harmful way. For example, If you tamper with that lock it's sure to break . [c. 1600]
-
Engage in improper or secret dealings, as in He was accused of tampering with the jury . [c. 1600]
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.
When agents go rogue, they can tamper with or delete valuable files.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 16, 2026
During a Test against South Africa, Smith admitted Australia's "leadership group" devised a plan to tamper with the ball.
From BBC • Nov. 23, 2025
The new passports will also feature updated security features, the Home Office said, including the latest anti-forgery technology - making them "harder to forge or tamper with".
From BBC • Oct. 10, 2025
Both antibiotics tamper with bacteria's ability to make new proteins by specifically targeting their ribosomes.
From Science Daily • Nov. 29, 2024
Several reporters, remembering the foiled attempts to kidnap Woolf and tamper with Seabiscuit, speculated that the foul was the result of a race-fixing conspiracy.
From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand
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.
