funny business

noun

: dishonest or improper activity

warned the students against any funny business during the test

Examples of funny business in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The cameras were there to make sure there was no funny business, Bonelli said, such as more than four passengers in a car. — Elizabeth Hernandez, Denver Post, 20 Aug. 2026

Another week, another issue of The Envelope — this one focused on funny business. — Matt Brennan, Los Angeles Times, 12 Aug. 2026

Any funny business will have to be conducted elsewhere, obviously. — Sean Joseph Outkick, FOXNews.com, 4 Aug. 2026

Some of them led to places that were forbidding, almost aggressively inscrutable, while others were easy enough to read but left an eight-year-old feeling that some funny business was going on behind her back. — Literary Hub, 15 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1882, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for funny business

• agribusiness
• nonbusiness