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semishady

semishady

9.5
Somewhat suspicious and not fully honest
  • adjective
  • /ˌsɛmɪˈʃeɪdi/
  • Informal
translation icon : sospechoso
  • Some online ads look semishady, so you should be careful before clicking on them.

Examples

  • He gave me a semishady explanation for why he was late to the meeting.

  • The offer seemed semishady, so I decided to ask more questions before agreeing.

  • That deal seems semishady.

  • I find his semishady behavior concerning.

  • The offer seemed semishady, so I decided to ask more questions before agreeing.

  • He gave me a semishady explanation for why he was late to the meeting.

  • Some online ads look semishady, so you should be careful before clicking on them.

Synonyms

shifty
vssemishady
17 7.4

A look or behavior that seems dishonest and hard to trust

is milder, implying partial dishonesty rather than clear deceit and untrustworthiness
a bit sketchy
vssemishady
  • Informal
1 8.6

A little suspicious and not easy to trust

is about mild suspicion or partial dishonesty rather than clear unreliability
suss
vssemishady
  • UK
1 9.6

Appearing dishonest or not trustworthy

is milder and focuses on slight untrustworthiness rather than clear wrongdoing
a bit sus
vssemishady
  • Slang
9.9

Slightly suspicious and not completely trustworthy

is milder, implying some dishonesty rather than clear deceitful behavior
sussy
vssemishady
  • Slang
9.9

A person or thing that seems dishonest and not trustworthy

is more neutral and suggests limited dishonesty rather than active deceit

Antonyms

1.0

Truthful and fair, not cheating or lying

88 2.1

A person or thing you can depend on to be honest

How Suspicious

corrupt
291 4.4
shady
  • Informal
79 5.5
semishady
  • Informal
9.5
dubious
90 6.5
trustworthy
88 2.1

Surface Forms

semishady positive
semishadier comparative
semishadiest superlative

Morphology

semishady = shady (transparent) = semi + shade + y

The meaning is a straightforward degree-modifying prefixation of semi- + shady, yielding 'somewhat shady'.

Etymology

Semishady joins semi- ('partly') with shady (which can mean 'suspicious' or 'not honest'), so semishady describes something that is 'somewhat suspicious' or not completely honest.