tricky

[ trik-ee ]

adjective

, trick·i·er, trick·i·est.

1. given to or characterized by deceitful tricks; crafty; wily.

   Synonyms: shrewd, sly, artful

2. skilled in clever tricks or dodges.

   Synonyms: adroit, skillful

3. deceptive, uncertain, or difficult to deal with or handle.

   Synonyms: perilous, unreliable, unpredictable, doubtful

tricky

/ ˈtrɪkɪ /

adjective

1. involving snags or difficulties

   a tricky job

2. needing careful and tactful handling

   a tricky situation

3. characterized by tricks; sly; wily

   a tricky dealer

Derived Forms

• ˈtrickiness, noun
• ˈtrickily, adverb

Other Words From

• tricki·ly adverb
• tricki·ness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of tricky¹

First recorded in 1780–90; trick + -y ¹

Example Sentences

When the ad shifts to Hunter Biden, it makes another tricky maneuver.

From Washington Post

By design, comparing the performance of RSAs to ETAs is tricky because they are two different animals.

From Search Engine Land

Below are a range of options to tackle the trickiest of scalp problems.

From Popular-Science

Even so, some say that navigating the talk can be tricky especially when doing so with a client.

From Digiday

We opened that up nationwide for free to the entire country because we knew navigating a relationship and dating in this environment was tricky.

From Fortune

The digital dating sphere can prove tricky, and bruising, for the trans user.

From The Daily Beast

Their solidified friendship is one of the most touching details of the premiere, but it also puts Branson in a tricky predicament.

From The Daily Beast

The power delivered by the rocket motor was uneven and tricky to control.

From The Daily Beast

It is a tricky and perilous path, but there are no realistic alternatives.

From The Daily Beast

What makes Islam so tricky that it trips up even the usually more discerning among us?

From The Daily Beast

The English have too much pride to be tricky or shabby, even in the essentially corrupting relation of buyer and seller.

From Project Gutenberg

A man's mind is a tricky thing—or, speaking more exactly, a man's emotions are tricky things.

From Project Gutenberg

He was concerned with the villainous intrigues of Cerizet, his copy-clerk, and with Theodose de la Peyrade, the tricky lawyer.

From Project Gutenberg

The thing, as he had said, was tricky; it came and went; and the fear of losing it was the most overpowering of all fears.

From Project Gutenberg

You may have married a healthy animal, but animals are tricky and uncertain.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• complex
• critical
• delicate
• intricate
• knotty
• precarious
• problematic
• risky
• rocky
• sensitive
• sticky
• thorny
• ticklish
• touchy
• unstable