dirty tricks


plural noun Informal.

Politics. unethical or illegal campaign practices or pranks intended to disrupt or sabotage the campaigns of opposing candidates.
any similar practices carried out against rival countries or corporations for espionage or commercial purposes.

Origin of dirty tricks

First recorded in 1970–75

OTHER WORDS FROM dirty tricks

dirt·y-trick·er·y [dur-tee-trik-uh-ree] /ˈdɜr tiˈtrɪk ə ri/, noun dirt·y-tricks, adjective dirt·y-trick·ster [dur-tee-trik-ster] /ˈdɜr tiˈtrɪk stər/, noun

British Dictionary definitions for dirty trick

dirty trick

noun

a malicious and contemptible action
(plural)
  1. underhand activity and machinations in political or governmental affairs
  2. (as modifier)dirty-tricks operation

Idioms and Phrases with dirty trick

dirty tricks

Undercover or clandestine operations and deceitful stratagems in politics and espionage. For example, This campaign has been dominated by the dirty tricks of both sides. The adjective dirty here is used in the sense of “unethical” or “unfair.” The term originally was applied to covert intelligence operations carried out by the Central Intelligence Agency, whose planning directorate was nicknamed “department of dirty tricks.” It later was extended to underhanded activity intended to undermine political opponents and commercial rivals. [1940s]