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

Decades of dirty tricks, oceans of money in politics and machine politicking have left voters jaded and disillusioned, craving basic authenticity and good faith from their candidates. — New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 6 Nov. 2026

There have been no dirty tricks. — Kevin Rennie, Hartford Courant, 13 June 2026

The film meticulously recreated their steps in linking the Watergate break-in and Republican ‘dirty tricks’ campaign to the highest echelons of power in America. — Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 17 May 2026

Some in the opposition are still expecting dirty tricks in the next days and weeks, before Orbán formally hands over power. — Anne Applebaum, The Atlantic, 13 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1963, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for dirty tricks

• bolsheviks
• candlesticks
• crucifix
• intermix
• lunatics
• mensheviks
• orthotics
• politicks
• politics
• biopolitics
• bricks
• brix