Definition of SHENANIGAN

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The history of shenanigan is as tricky and mischievous as its meaning. Etymologists have some theories about its origins, but no one has been able to prove them. All we can say for certain is that the earliest known use of the word in print appeared in the April 25, 1855, issue of San Francisco's Town Talk. Although the "underhanded trick" sense of the word is oldest, the most common senses in use now are "tricky or questionable practices" (as in "political shenanigans") and "high-spirited behavior" (as in "youthful shenanigans").

Examples of shenanigan in a Sentence

students engaging in youthful shenanigans on the last day of school an act of vandalism that went way beyond the usual shenanigans at summer camp

Recent Examples on the Web Food sources are particularly slim this time of year, which can result in these types of shenanigans. — Meghan Overdeep, Southern Living, "Women Hide as Bear Ransacks Gatlinburg Rental Cabin, Steals Candy, Chips, Beer," 13 May 2020 When The Aces are reunited, complete with badass matching leather jackets, more shenanigans ensue: sneaking into a motel room, dining and dashing after dinner at a local diner. — Ineye Komonibo, refinery29.com, "The Aces’ “Daydream” Will Make It Feel Like Spring Again," 24 Mar. 2020 That’s how the trailer sets up the rowdy shenanigans in this quintessential spring break film, about two friends (David Knell and Perry Lang) who visit Fort Lauderdale for a spring break bacchanal. — Erik Piepenburg, New York Times, "Spriiiing Breeeak, at Home," 19 Mar. 2020 If one of the questions the season 3 finale left you with was whether or not the show will return with more shenanigans, rest easy. — Ashley Hoffman, Time, "Westworld Season 4 Is Happening. Here's Everything We Know So Far," 4 May 2020 Why the shenanigans for such a problematic prospect? — Eric Branch, SFChronicle.com, "How 49ers bent their rules to draft slow Frank Gore, a future Hall of Famer," 21 Apr. 2020 The social media site maintains it’s trying to clean up thedisinformation and shenanigans, but questionable schemes run rampant and influence peddlers often hide their identities. — Jeremy B. Merrill, Quartz, "Help Quartz track political influence on Facebook with this browser extension," 16 Apr. 2020 Brews Brothers is heavy on puerile shenanigans, many if not most based on bodily fluids and injecting those fluids and miscellaneous body parts into the brewing process. — Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, "'Brews Brothers': TV Review," 9 Apr. 2020 The face came from a family The tiny bronze face has long been a loner, staring up at passers-by and who knows what shenanigans, next to Circle Centre Mall. — Domenica Bongiovanni, Indianapolis Star, "Mystery solved: Meet the creator of the tiny bronze face glued by Circle Centre," 10 Mar. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'shenanigan.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.