tricky

adjective \ ˈtri-kē \

|Updated on: 21 Aug 2018

Tip: Synonym Guide

Examples: tricky in a Sentence

Definition of tricky

trickier; trickiest

1 : inclined to or marked by trickery

2 a : giving a deceptive impression of easiness, simplicity, or order : ticklish

a tricky path through the swamp

b : trick 2

3 : requiring skill, knack, or caution (as in doing or handling) : difficult

a tricky problem

; also : ingenious

a tricky rhythm

—

trickily

play \ˈtri-kə-lē\ adverb

—

trickiness

play \ˈtri-kē-nəs\ noun

See tricky defined for English-language learners

See tricky defined for kids

Examples of tricky in a Sentence

The lock is tricky to open.
a tricky musical passage for the woodwind section

Recent Examples of tricky from the Web

But optical interferometry is far trickier: The short wavelengths of visible light, running at terahertz frequencies, cannot yet be digitized by any electrical system.

— adam mann, Science | AAAS, "Telescope array will spy on spy satellites, star surfaces and black holes," 3 July 2018
If that’s the case, then moving animals to different parts of the country to improve their survival rates could be trickier than anticipated.

— deborah netburn, latimes.com, "The koalas are threatened. Can their genome help us save them?," 2 July 2018
Merkel will now have to strike bilateral deals with other E.U. countries to decide how to implement the measures — agreements that will potentially be far trickier than the one made Friday morning.

— billy perrigo, Time, "European Leaders Say They Made a 'Breakthrough' Deal on the Migrant Crisis. Here's What They Agreed To Do," 29 June 2018
Traffic patterns are not significantly impacted by Forecastle so getting in and out isn't that tricky but Uber doesn't care.

— jeffrey lee puckett, The Courier-Journal, "From parking garages to public transit, here's how to get to Forecastle," 11 July 2018
That's made a bit tricky by the hardware—if there are two mirrors on an arm of the Y, one is obviously farther from the center.

— scott k. johnson, Ars Technica, "Building the world’s highest-resolution telescope," 9 July 2018
This can be especially tricky if their income is close to the cutoff for eligibility, which is 400 percent of the federal poverty level — $48,200 for a single person and $64,960 for a family of two like the Stapps.

— catherine ho, SFChronicle.com, "Affordable Care Act’s unexpected side effect: an IOU to the IRS," 8 July 2018
Fences Movies based on plays are always tricky, and whispers usually not that interesting.

— tom philip, GQ, "The Best Movies/TV to Stream on Hulu This July 4," 3 July 2018
For PharmaLogics Recruiting in Quincy, which screens hundreds of pharmaceutical job candidates for clients every week, the requirement is especially tricky.

— katie johnston, BostonGlobe.com, "As gender pay law kicks in, companies scrutinize wages," 30 June 2018

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

First Known Use of tricky

1786

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

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tricky Synonyms

Synonym Discussion of tricky

sly, cunning, crafty, wily, tricky, foxy, artful, slick mean attaining or seeking to attain one's ends by guileful or devious means. sly implies furtiveness, lack of candor, and skill in concealing one's aims and methods.