variants
or skullduggery
as in deception
the use of clever underhanded actions to achieve an end
the company's apparently healthy bottom line was merely an illusion, the result of years of accounting skulduggery
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Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of skulduggery
This one went smoothly — no claims of rampant rigging, no significant taint of skulduggery — due in large part to the defeat of deepfakes, democracy’s newest enemy.
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Michael Rogers, Twin Cities, 14 Jan. 2024
In a separate incident of apparent skulduggery in 2007, Belichick was fined a league maximum of $500,000.
—Bill Pennington, New York Times, 11 Jan. 2024
And the latest corporate skulduggery requires Murderbot to access its creativity in a whole new way.
—Charlie Jane Anders, Washington Post, 19 Dec. 2023
Yevgeny Prigozhin for years had denied any connection to the Wagner mercenary group and operated discreetly on the margins of Russian power, trading in political skulduggery, cafeteria meals and lethal force.
—Paul Sonne, BostonGlobe.com, 26 Aug. 2023
See all Example Sentences for skulduggery 
Michael Rogers, Twin Cities, 14 Jan. 2024
In a separate incident of apparent skulduggery in 2007, Belichick was fined a league maximum of $500,000.
—Bill Pennington, New York Times, 11 Jan. 2024
And the latest corporate skulduggery requires Murderbot to access its creativity in a whole new way.
—Charlie Jane Anders, Washington Post, 19 Dec. 2023
Yevgeny Prigozhin for years had denied any connection to the Wagner mercenary group and operated discreetly on the margins of Russian power, trading in political skulduggery, cafeteria meals and lethal force.
—Paul Sonne, BostonGlobe.com, 26 Aug. 2023
See all Example Sentences for skulduggery
Recent Examples of Synonyms for skulduggery
Noun
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This democratization of deception tools means threats can come from anywhere—disgruntled employees, competitors or opportunistic individuals—not just sophisticated state actors or cybercrime rings.Joseph Ours, Forbes, 8 Jan. 2025
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Langenberg’s sharp slider and 92-94 mph fastball lead a five-pitch mix, and his low arm slot adds some deception.Aaron Gleeman, The Athletic, 8 Jan. 2025
Noun
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There’s still a lot of baseball chicanery to take place over the next few months, though.Grant Brisbee, The Athletic, 18 July 2024
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The eternal fight for liberty — slaves into gladiators, gladiators into free men — calls for courage and purpose beyond Lucius’s nightmarish expectations, uncovering the treachery and chicanery of Roman politics.Armond White, National Review, 6 Dec. 2024
Noun
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In an era rife with conspiracy theories and subterfuge, how much of those forces are products of our own doing, perhaps our imagining?Dana Feldman, Forbes, 30 Dec. 2024
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The story that follows includes intense political subterfuge, villainous monologues, and heart-wrenching character deaths.Courtney Mifsud Intreglia, TIME, 18 Sep. 2024
Noun
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Featuring a brand new cast of reality television’s best and most conniving, the U.S. version of Peacock’s hit game show returns on January 9 for more challenges, trickery, and impeccable outfits from host Cumming.Harrison Richlin, IndieWire, 23 Nov. 2024
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Background/foreground blur and other in-camera trickery are used to great effect.Scott Phillips, Forbes, 23 Dec. 2024
Noun
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The political games that were played with the release of this study only serve to reinforce the impression many have held since the permitting pause was imposed in January, which is that the entire thing has from Day One been an exercise in political gamesmanship.David Blackmon, Forbes, 17 Dec. 2024
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In Republicans' absence, Democrats passed a slew of legislation, and leaders from both sides of the aisle capped the dramatic day accusing one another of political gamesmanship.Arpan Lobo, Detroit Free Press, 14 Dec. 2024
Noun
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Getting out doesn’t just require thumb-shredding dexterity, wit, and guile but also — fittingly for its premise — patience.Lewis Gordon, Vulture, 5 Dec. 2024
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Over time, guile took on the connotation of deceitful cunning in English, emerging in Middle English around the 12th century.Erik Kain, Forbes, 1 Dec. 2024
Noun
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Congressional legerdemain can’t wave away that reality.Howard Gleckman, Forbes, 4 Dec. 2024
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Both activities depended on legerdemain and made elaborate use of optical illusions.Jonathon Keats, Forbes, 23 Sep. 2024
Articles Related to skulduggery
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Cite this Entry
“Skulduggery.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/skulduggery. Accessed 20 Jan. 2025.
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