Tricky has 4 different meanings across 1 category:
Adjective
Adjective
1
not to be trusted
"how extraordinarily slippery a liar the camera is"
2
having concealed difficulty
"a catchy question"
"a tricky recipe to follow"
3
marked by skill in deception
"cunning men often pass for wise"
"deep political machinations"
"a foxy scheme"
"a slick evasive answer"
"sly as a fox"
"tricky Dick"
"a wily old attorney"
4
hard to deal with, complicated
"The new software update is tricky because it requires careful configuration to avoid crashing the system."
In plain English: Tricky means something is difficult to deal with because it has unexpected problems that make you think twice before acting.
"The riddle was tricky, so I had to think very hard to find the answer."
Example Sentences
"The riddle was tricky, so I had to think very hard to find the answer."
adj
"The puzzle was tricky to solve without any hints."
adj
"It is hard to balance on that tricky patch of ice."
adj
"He gave me a tricky question during the interview."
adj
Related Terms
Show all 23 terms ↓
Origin
The word tricky is formed by adding the suffix -y to trick. It was first used as an adjective meaning full of tricks or deceitful around the early 17th century.