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
3
: requiring skill, knack, or caution (as in doing or handling) : difficult
a tricky problem
also : ingenious
a tricky rhythm
trickily adverb
trickiness noun
Choose the Right Synonym for 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.

a sly corporate raider

cunning suggests the inventive use of sometimes limited intelligence in overreaching or circumventing.

the cunning fox avoided the trap

crafty implies cleverness and subtlety of method.

a crafty lefthander

wily implies skill and deception in maneuvering.

the wily fugitive escaped the posse

tricky is more likely to suggest shiftiness and unreliability than skill in deception and maneuvering.

a tricky political operative

foxy implies a shrewd and wary craftiness usually involving devious dealing.

a foxy publicity man planting stories

artful implies indirectness in dealing and often connotes sophistication or cleverness.

elicited the information by artful questioning

slick emphasizes smoothness and guile.

slick operators selling time-sharing

Examples of tricky in a Sentence

The lock is tricky to open. a tricky musical passage for the woodwind section
Recent Examples on the Web Fall weather at an elevation like this can be tricky. Kristine Solomon, Travel + Leisure, 19 Oct. 2024 Dry skin can make makeup application tricky, since formulas tend to cling onto dry patches and flakes. Genevieve Cepeda, People.com, 18 Oct. 2024 Then there’s the cost of therapy, of course, which can be a really tricky obstacle to overcome. Julia Sullivan, SELF, 17 Oct. 2024 Generating translations for entire games is tricky given the quick pace and deep knowledge needed to follow it. Jenn Brice, Fortune, 16 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for tricky 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tricky.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1786, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of tricky was in 1786

Dictionary Entries Near tricky

Cite this Entry

“Tricky.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tricky. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

tricky

adjective
trickier; trickiest
1
: likely to use or characterized by tricks or trickery
2
: requiring skill or caution : difficult
a tricky situation

More from Merriam-Webster on tricky

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