1
as in mischief
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 tomfoolery
wildly playful or mischievous behavior
an act of vandalism that went way beyond the usual shenanigans at summer camp
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of shenanigans
Check back for morning-after recaps of weekday episodes and a Monday roundup of the weekend’s shenanigans.
—
Kathleen Walsh, Vulture, 19 June 2026
More shenanigans were provided at the next World Cup in Spain.
—Blair Kerkhoff, Kansas City Star, 8 June 2026
Most spectators who truly knew the personnel understood that Utah had to pull some real shenanigans to tank properly.
—Tony Jones, New York Times, 2 June 2026
In this way, First Light reminds me of GoldenEye, a game that injected Bond shenanigans into a shooter.
—Jordan Minor, PC Magazine, 1 June 2026
Subway shenanigans continued in South Brooklyn Sunday, with officials seeking two youths caught having snuck into the subterranean Church Ave.
—Evan Simko-Bednarski, New York Daily News, 1 June 2026
If governments require airlines to offer a cash refund and only give vouchers on request, that would stop some (but not all) of the shenanigans.
—Christopher Elliott, USA Today, 24 May 2026
At first, Tyson couldn't recall any shenanigans, but Von's team had done its deep research on Iron Mike and knew there was a Brad Pitt connection.
—Joe Kinsey Outkick, FOXNews.com, 18 May 2026
Another issue involves the fictional movie being shot, which is called Desert and seems to be about the perils of Spanish colonialism, yet remains disconnected to all the shenanigans going on behind the scenes.
—Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 16 May 2026
Kathleen Walsh, Vulture, 19 June 2026
More shenanigans were provided at the next World Cup in Spain.
—Blair Kerkhoff, Kansas City Star, 8 June 2026
Most spectators who truly knew the personnel understood that Utah had to pull some real shenanigans to tank properly.
—Tony Jones, New York Times, 2 June 2026
In this way, First Light reminds me of GoldenEye, a game that injected Bond shenanigans into a shooter.
—Jordan Minor, PC Magazine, 1 June 2026
Subway shenanigans continued in South Brooklyn Sunday, with officials seeking two youths caught having snuck into the subterranean Church Ave.
—Evan Simko-Bednarski, New York Daily News, 1 June 2026
If governments require airlines to offer a cash refund and only give vouchers on request, that would stop some (but not all) of the shenanigans.
—Christopher Elliott, USA Today, 24 May 2026
At first, Tyson couldn't recall any shenanigans, but Von's team had done its deep research on Iron Mike and knew there was a Brad Pitt connection.
—Joe Kinsey Outkick, FOXNews.com, 18 May 2026
Another issue involves the fictional movie being shot, which is called Desert and seems to be about the perils of Spanish colonialism, yet remains disconnected to all the shenanigans going on behind the scenes.
—Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 16 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shenanigans
Noun
-
The magic and mischief of Maradona The quality of Diego Maradona’s overall performance at the 1986 World Cup remains without parallel in the competition’s history.—
Will Jeanes,
New York Times,
20 June 2026
-
Officers located and stopped a vehicle owned by Prieto, then of Hammond, who was known to police from the prior Explorer fire as well as other criminal mischief.—
Meredith Colias-Pete,
Chicago Tribune,
19 June 2026
Noun
-
The project has been plagued by technical issues, supplier disputes, and alleged tomfoolery—empty mini tequila bottles were reportedly discovered on one of the airplanes under construction.—
Ian Bogost,
The Atlantic,
12 June 2026
-
The latest tomfoolery consisted of a posting on Twitter/X last week that provided a picture of a genuine Monet painting, and the picture was labeled as supposedly being AI-generated.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
20 May 2026
Noun
-
Alite faces multiple counts of extortion, corporate misconduct, loansharking and terroristic threats.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
22 June 2026
-
Councilman John Alite, 63, of Englishtown, was arrested on Friday and charged with multiple counts of theft by extortion, corporate misconduct, usury and terroristic threats, according to the New Jersey Attorney General's office.—
Ronn Blitzer , Tessa Hoyos,
FOXNews.com,
22 June 2026
Noun
-
Oh, but the Padres manager was ready with the joking last night.—
Kevin Acee,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
21 June 2026
-
Still, Yoon’s joking somehow lightens the mood.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
11 June 2026
Noun
-
The show, with its interest in corporate buffoonery, doesn’t quite manage to hand-wave away the queasy implications.—
Inkoo Kang,
New Yorker,
27 Mar. 2026
-
Receivers have cratered seasons with me-over-we buffoonery.—
Troy Renck,
Denver Post,
19 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The clowning might be a little too effortful.—
Theater Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
13 May 2026
-
As the race unfolds in real time, there’s clowning, collisions, sabotage, surprises, comedy, chaos and more.—
Pam Kragen,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
13 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
When horseplay turns into an impromptu hookup, neither of the young men fight the urge.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
17 June 2026
-
After France’s 4-3 victory against Argentina at the 2018 World Cup in Russia, horseplay between the players at the team hotel culminated in back-up centre-back Adil Rami setting off a fire extinguisher in the early hours of the morning.—
Tom Williams,
New York Times,
17 May 2026
Noun
-
As expected, Aussies brought the roughhousing.—
Sean Gregory,
Time,
20 June 2026
-
The boys challenge each other to throw heavy objects, which leads to intense roughhousing.—
Carlos Aguilar,
Variety,
27 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Shenanigans.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shenanigans. Accessed 24 Jun. 2026.
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