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definitions

underhanded

[uhn-der-han-did]
See more synonyms for underhanded on Thesaurus.com
adjective
  1. underhand.
  2. short-handed: By the time of the Navy game, Army usually finds itself underhanded.

Origin of underhanded

First recorded in 1800–10; under- + handed
Related formsun·der·hand·ed·ly, adverbun·der·hand·ed·ness, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for underhanded

devious, cheating, dishonest, deceitful, sneaky, subversive, wily, unscrupulous, shady, fraudulent, unethical, underhand, clandestine, corrupt, scheming, secretive, shifty, sly, guileful, covert

Examples from the Web for underhanded

Contemporary Examples of underhanded

Historical Examples of underhanded

  • How in the world did they get here, and what underhanded work are they up to now?

    Dave Porter and His Rivals

    Edward Stratemeyer

  • Literally to draw away from under, or in an underhanded way, as by stealth.

    Orthography

    Elmer W. Cavins

  • He had an innate dislike to the man, who looked furtive and underhanded.

    Quicksilver

    George Manville Fenn

  • You want to drive us out, do you, you sneakin' underhanded hound!

    Roughing It

    Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens)

  • Ef this ez any underhanded work of yours, you'll pay for it.

    Cressy

    Bret Harte

British Dictionary definitions for underhanded

underhanded

adjective
  1. another word for underhand, short-handed
Derived Formsunderhandedly, adverbunderhandedness, noun
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
Word Origin and History for underhanded
adj.

in reference to a throw, etc., c.1822, from underhand. As "in secret," from 1825; as "with too few people," from 1834.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper