1
as in deceptive
given to or marked by cheating and deception
the commercial is a part of an underhanded PR campaign to whitewash the company's environmental record
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in clandestine
undertaken or done so as to escape being observed or known by others
an underhanded attempt at infiltrating the other party's headquarters
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in underhand
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of underhanded
Dominic Patten, Deadline, 4 Mar. 2025
Brittany doubtless committed homicide, but the underhanded techniques that helped put her on death row could also be used against innocent people.
—Lawrence Wright, The New Yorker, 10 Feb. 2025
Question 300 supporters accuse the anti-marijuana majority on the council of using baldly underhanded tactics to thwart the will of the voters in this city of nearly half a million people.
—John Aguilar, The Denver Post, 19 Jan. 2025
The Trump team’s efforts to crush dissent range from public-media campaigns targeting vulnerable senators in conservative states (and paid for by unelected billionaires) to more underhanded tactics aimed at intimidating and discrediting potentially hostile witnesses.
—Jane Mayer, The New Yorker, 14 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for underhanded
Adjective
Amidst, all the in court and outside court filings, statements and postures around this multi-lawsuit matter the NYT has long said its journalists did their job and there was nothing underhanded going on.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 4 Mar. 2025
Brittany doubtless committed homicide, but the underhanded techniques that helped put her on death row could also be used against innocent people.
—Lawrence Wright, The New Yorker, 10 Feb. 2025
Question 300 supporters accuse the anti-marijuana majority on the council of using baldly underhanded tactics to thwart the will of the voters in this city of nearly half a million people.
—John Aguilar, The Denver Post, 19 Jan. 2025
The Trump team’s efforts to crush dissent range from public-media campaigns targeting vulnerable senators in conservative states (and paid for by unelected billionaires) to more underhanded tactics aimed at intimidating and discrediting potentially hostile witnesses.
—Jane Mayer, The New Yorker, 14 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for underhanded
Recent Examples of Synonyms for underhanded
Adjective
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Without resources or expertise to vet influencers properly, these companies become vulnerable to deceptive practices.—
Matthew Kayser,
USA Today,
27 Apr. 2025
-
In 2022, the California DMV sued Tesla, saying the company engaged in deceptive marketing and advertising practices around its Autopilot and Full Self-Driving systems.—
Lora Kolodny,
CNBC,
25 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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After authorities responded with mass arrests, weavers formed clandestine committees and took secret oaths.—
John Cassidy,
New Yorker,
14 Apr. 2025
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Til Schweiger plays a sardonic whale-tourism boat captain (and former elite military operative, obviously) who gets roped into taking down a clandestine organization that’s building the perfect super-soldier through genetic experiments.—
Jordan Crucchiola,
Vulture,
4 Apr. 2025
Adverb
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Each team will alternate tossing the bean bag underhand onto the board until all four bean bags are thrown.—
Anthony Gharib,
USA TODAY,
13 June 2023
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Pitchers tossed underhand and no one wore gloves yet, resulting in smarting pain in the hands of catchers and first basemen.—
Jeff Suess,
The Enquirer,
29 Mar. 2023
Adjective
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Any email platform is exposed to this kind of attack, with scammers using fraudulent alerts and malicious links to entrap victims.—
Davey Winder,
Forbes.com,
25 Apr. 2025
-
Affected individuals may be vulnerable to identity theft, fraudulent account openings and targeted phishing attempts.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
25 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
The mood shifts from shady to straight-up scandalous.—
Shelby Stewart,
Essence,
21 Apr. 2025
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Instead, Fenix lost the biggest match of his young WWE career, albeit under shady circumstances, while Americano picked up a WrestleMania win.—
Blake Oestriecher,
Forbes.com,
20 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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After the unexpected death of the pope, Cardinal Lawrence (Ralph Fiennes) is tasked with running the covert process of choosing a new leader.—
Saman Shafiq,
USA Today,
22 Apr. 2025
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Despite numerous brushes with the law, he was frequently shielded from prosecution, feeding theories about his connections to high-level covert U.S. operations.—
Antonio Maria Delgado,
Miami Herald,
18 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Evans' latest film, Havoc, stars Tom Hardy as Walker, an unsavory fixer tasked with protecting the son of real estate tycoon Lawrence Beaumont (Forest Whitaker) after the kid stumbles into a plot involving the Yakuza, crooked cops, and other assorted goons.—
Randall Colburn,
EW.com,
26 Apr. 2025
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Rooker plays Steve, a crooked detective with a ruthless streak who holds the key to Hammer’s only weakness.—
Patrick Brzeski,
HollywoodReporter,
17 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Former Attorney General Merrick Garland said in October that the Justice Department foiled the plot as the men bought the rifles from an undercover FBI employee.—
Krystal Nurse,
USA Today,
18 Apr. 2025
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Kasie discovers that the Poet used jeweler Gemma Wood (Michelle Lukes) as a go-between to broker deals with anonymous clients, so Torres goes undercover as the man himself since news of his death hasn't left NCIS HQ.—
Sara Netzley,
EW.com,
15 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Underhanded.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/underhanded. Accessed 2 May. 2025.
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