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underhand

[ uhn-der-hand ]
/ ˈʌn dərˌhænd /
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See synonyms for underhand on Thesaurus.com
adjective
executed with the hand below the level of the shoulder and the palm turned upward and forward: an underhand delivery of a ball.
underhanded (def. 1): an underhand deal with the chief of police.
adverb
with the hand below the level of the shoulder and the palm turned upward and forward: to bowl underhand.
secretly; stealthily; slyly.
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Origin of underhand

First recorded before 900; 1530–40 for def. 2; Middle English adverb under honde “in one's possession, in one's charge, secretly,” Old English under hand, under hond(e) “in one's possession, in one's subjection, in one's power”; see origin at under-, hand

Words nearby underhand

underground railroad, underground trolley, undergrown, undergrowth, underhair, underhand, underhand chop, underhanded, underhoused, underhung, underinsurance
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

Words related to underhand

underhanded, clandestine, concealed, crafty, crooked, cunning, deceptive, devious, dishonest, dishonorable, double-crossing, duplicitous, fraudulent, furtive, guileful, hush-hush, indirect, insidious, oblique, secret

How to use underhand in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for underhand

underhand
/ (ˈʌndəˌhænd) /
adjective Also: underhanded
clandestine, deceptive, or secretive
sport another word for underarm
adverb
in an underhand manner or style
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
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