1
as in mischief
usually shenanigans plural
playful, reckless behavior that is not intended to cause serious harm
students engaging in youthful shenanigans on the last day of school
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in joking
usually shenanigans plural
wildly playful or mischievous behavior
an act of vandalism that went way beyond the usual shenanigans at summer camp
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in ruse
a clever often underhanded means to achieve an end
the street-corner huckster of pirated DVDs had all sorts of shenanigans to keep the cops off of his tail
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of shenanigan
Read on to learn how this treat inspired such shenanigans.
—
Libby Monteith Minor, Southern Living, 19 Oct. 2025
The folks at the unfortunate mercy of such shenanigans, however, might just be Dart and Broncos quarterback Bo Nix.
—Luca Evans, Denver Post, 17 Oct. 2025
More pastel shenanigans are on the way.
—Christian Blauvelt, IndieWire, 16 Oct. 2025
Still, the sleek production design, symphonic score and performances from a killer ensemble act as a life preserver, making the shenanigans at sea a little less choppy.
—Courtney Howard, Variety, 9 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for shenanigan
Libby Monteith Minor, Southern Living, 19 Oct. 2025
The folks at the unfortunate mercy of such shenanigans, however, might just be Dart and Broncos quarterback Bo Nix.
—Luca Evans, Denver Post, 17 Oct. 2025
More pastel shenanigans are on the way.
—Christian Blauvelt, IndieWire, 16 Oct. 2025
Still, the sleek production design, symphonic score and performances from a killer ensemble act as a life preserver, making the shenanigans at sea a little less choppy.
—Courtney Howard, Variety, 9 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for shenanigan
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shenanigan
Noun
-
He was arrested hours later and charged with two counts of disorderly conduct, fifth-degree criminal mischief and two counts of third-degree harassment.—
Peter D'Abrosca,
FOXNews.com,
7 Nov. 2025
-
He was charged with burglary with assault, burglary of an unoccupied conveyance, and criminal mischief after a dispute with a moving truck driver.—
Jordana Comiter,
PEOPLE,
7 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Self was in a joking mood when asked about the squad’s stellar defensive play.—
Gary Bedore,
Kansas City Star,
29 Oct. 2025
-
Jones eventually got into his joking bag, and Bleek took that opportunity to seriously set the record straight one last time.—
Armon Sadler,
VIBE.com,
15 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
The New York Colored American reported that some offers of short-term work for Black men — moving livestock to or from Kentucky, for example — were ruses that ended with kidnappings.—
Equal Justice Initiative,
USA Today,
6 Nov. 2025
-
Odysseus, the Ithacan warrior who is as celebrated for craftiness as Achilles is for brute strength, devises a clever ruse in which the Greeks place a giant wooden horse outside Troy’s walls and pretend to sail away.—
Elizabeth D. Samet,
Foreign Affairs,
29 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Former Ray County Sheriff Scott Childers, whose tenure was dogged by a maelstrom of misconduct allegations that led to his resignation, appeared in federal court in downtown Kansas City on civil rights violation charges on Wednesday.—
Kacen Bayless,
Kansas City Star,
5 Nov. 2025
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Greenfield Police Chief Jay Johnson faces a felony misconduct charge for allegedly using a police camera at his private residence.—
Adrienne Davis,
jsonline.com,
5 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
There was nothing particularly frightening about their Viennese waltz, which was a nice change from all the creepy tomfoolery earlier in the night.—
Lynette Rice,
Deadline,
28 Oct. 2025
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This Survivor 49 challenge tomfoolery actually began before the season even started filming.—
Dalton Ross,
Entertainment Weekly,
8 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Cherki is a dying breed of player, particularly now he’s been transferred to a Premier League which has moved away from off-the-cuff dribblers and towards set-play schemes.—
Jordan Campbell,
New York Times,
8 Nov. 2025
-
Another worker operates the machine’s main controller, using a programming scheme for 3D printers called G-code to tell the printer what to build and how to build it.—
Jake Goodrick,
Sacbee.com,
8 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
The oldest trick in the book … foiled by those pesky Bravo cameras.—
Tom Smyth,
Vulture,
5 Nov. 2025
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The next evolution of creative culture isn’t faster turnaround or cooler AI tricks.—
Rochelle Ratkaj,
Rolling Stone,
4 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Since medieval times, the colorful fool—from court jesters to Shakespeare’s characters—has used playful wit to critique authority and buffoonery to whip up excitement.—
Time,
Time,
30 Oct. 2025
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Their relationship, tentative, intimate, and defiant, lingers long after the satirical skewering of male buffoonery has faded.—
Leila Latif,
IndieWire,
5 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Shenanigan.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shenanigan. Accessed 11 Nov. 2025.
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