underhanded
Americanadjective
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not open and aboveboard; secret and crafty or dishonorable.
The firm's underhanded tactics and misrepresentation of data has created uncertainty and confusion.
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The pitcher made an underhanded throw to first base.
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By the time of the Navy game, Army usually finds itself underhanded.
adjective
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012Other Word Forms
- underhandedly adverb
- underhandedness noun
Etymology
Origin of underhanded
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.
He’s dealing with the laws of the state, and by employing the kind of underhanded tactics that might have worked in a familial context, he has opened himself to legal consequences.
From MarketWatch
Sensing Tatis converging from right field, center fielder Jackson Merrill briefly hesitated while pursuing the drive, before awkwardly reaching for it with an underhanded attempt.
From Los Angeles Times
Local 99 of Services Employees International Union says the district has been underhanded by keeping many employees working fewer than four hours per day.
From Los Angeles Times
Serves are underhanded and aces are slow, intricately placed shots that bounce at an angle off the side glass.
From Los Angeles Times
She accused Safe Hands's bosses of doing "an underhanded, ruthless thing".
From BBC
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.