as in deception
the use of clever underhanded actions to achieve an end
the judge ordered the corporation to hand over all records, with no jiggery-pokery about unexpected problems and missing information
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Recent Examples of jiggery-pokery
The point is that the Constitution says that Congress has the sole power to decide what the country spends on, and with a bit of jiggery-pokery, this court let all the air out of those words.
—
Thomas G. Moukawsher, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 Aug. 2025
Thomas G. Moukawsher, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for jiggery-pokery
Noun
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This deception is slicker than a greased pig!—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
2 Mar. 2026
-
One of the best seasons of the show so far, season 4 of HBO’s finance-world saga dialed the drama, deception, corporate-speak, stress, and moral ambiguity to the max.—
Meg Walters,
Glamour,
2 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The Traitors winner Rob Rausch has paid the price for his trickery.—
Emlyn Travis,
Entertainment Weekly,
5 Mar. 2026
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There’s almost nothing in the way of metaphor or trickery.—
Olivier Lafontant,
Pitchfork,
25 Feb. 2026
Noun
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That said, there are plenty of reasons — none involving any kind of partisan chicanery — that explain why California elections seems to drag on and vote totals shift as ballots are steadily counted.—
Mark Z. Barabak,
Mercury News,
18 Feb. 2026
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That said, there are plenty of reasons — none involving any kind of partisan chicanery — that explain why California elections seems to drag on and vote totals shift as ballots are steadily counted.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
11 Feb. 2026
Noun
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This claim swayed Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh to note this version of the administration’s fabrication in his dissent, which will be forever linked to this administration’s subterfuge.—
Mark Pirie,
Chicago Tribune,
2 Mar. 2026
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Both nations are among the tournament's top contenders, which made the last few practices stateside simmering with subterfuge.—
Ren Clayton,
CBS News,
10 Feb. 2026
Noun
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After Thomas Hickey was hanged that year for mutiny, sedition and treachery, Washington warned that his fate should serve as a caution to all soldiers.—
Kim Hjelmgaard,
USA Today,
26 Feb. 2026
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With their leader detained, El Mayo’s sicarios, or hit men, declared war against supporters of Chapo’s sons in an attempt to exact vengeance for the treachery and strengthen their own position in the wider organization.—
Daniel DePetris,
Mercury News,
26 Feb. 2026
Noun
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The governor’s office offered no explanation for its skullduggery.—
Kevin Rennie,
Hartford Courant,
7 Mar. 2026
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Soprano Nicole Car’s initially elegant Elizabeth accumulates both physical and vocal intensity as the opera exposes more and more skulduggery around her.—
Scott Cantrell,
Dallas Morning News,
28 Feb. 2026
Noun
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In some possible gamesmanship, South Carolina will start junior right-hander Nealy Lamb.—
Thomas Jones,
Austin American Statesman,
6 Mar. 2026
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Speaking of which… How might the gerrymandering gamesmanship between the parties play out in the fall?—
Ian Crouch,
New Yorker,
4 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Of course, the retort is that this would be irritating and exasperating to be continually deluged with alerts about AI deceptiveness.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
24 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Jiggery-pokery.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/jiggery-pokery. Accessed 10 Mar. 2026.
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