dirty tricks
plural noun
: underhanded stratagems for obtaining secret information about or sabotaging an enemy or for discrediting an opponent (as in politics)
dirty trickster
noun
Examples of dirty tricks in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Thank you, Secretary Duffy, for exposing their dirty tricks.
—
Anna Skinner, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Nov. 2025
Of course Nixon and his colleagues were immersed in dirty tricks.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 29 Aug. 2025
The underlying truth is serious enough: Trump was the victim of one of the most insidious dirty tricks in American political history.
—The Editors, National Review, 24 July 2025
Was this any worse than the dirty tricks of American politics past?
—Keith Gessen, New Yorker, 16 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for dirty tricks
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Anna Skinner, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Nov. 2025
Of course Nixon and his colleagues were immersed in dirty tricks.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 29 Aug. 2025
The underlying truth is serious enough: Trump was the victim of one of the most insidious dirty tricks in American political history.
—The Editors, National Review, 24 July 2025
Was this any worse than the dirty tricks of American politics past?
—Keith Gessen, New Yorker, 16 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for dirty tricks
Cite this Entry
“Dirty tricks.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dirty%20tricks. Accessed 6 Dec. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share