as in deception
the use of clever underhanded actions to achieve an end
had to resort to a certain amount of hanky-panky to sneak away from the house without his dog seeing him
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Recent Examples of hanky-panky
So just to be critical or even open to suspicion of hanky-panky or shenanigans around vaccination is immediately shut down by The New York Times or anybody.
—
David Zane Mairowitz, Rolling Stone, 22 Dec. 2025
And Floria most certainly doesn’t indulge in any of the hanky-panky in elevators and storerooms of the kind that the randy staffers in Grey’s Anatomy wallow in.
—Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 2 Aug. 2025
But there was no hanky-panky, and in fact the two couples had dinner together every week for two years after Dirty Dancing wrapped.
—Bethy Squires, Vulture, 19 Sep. 2024
On my ride with Boaz and Javadi, a Waymo operator suddenly joined us on the audio system, not to inform us that hanky-panky is prohibited, but to say that two passengers did not have their seat belts fastened.
—Steve Lopez, Los Angeles Times, 26 July 2024
Any outlier hanky-panky effort by Republicans would be enjoined by the courts based upon solid precedent.
—Jerry Goldfeder, New York Daily News, 24 July 2024
No hanky-panky, no name calling, no twisting of truths, no bull.
—Patrick Wallis, Baltimore Sun, 24 May 2024
Our inescapable conclusion is that the target of this pitch is being snowed by an acquaintance hoping to climb out of the friend zone for a bout of hanky-panky before moving on.
—Tom Zoellner, SPIN, 21 Feb. 2024
David Zane Mairowitz, Rolling Stone, 22 Dec. 2025
And Floria most certainly doesn’t indulge in any of the hanky-panky in elevators and storerooms of the kind that the randy staffers in Grey’s Anatomy wallow in.
—Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 2 Aug. 2025
But there was no hanky-panky, and in fact the two couples had dinner together every week for two years after Dirty Dancing wrapped.
—Bethy Squires, Vulture, 19 Sep. 2024
On my ride with Boaz and Javadi, a Waymo operator suddenly joined us on the audio system, not to inform us that hanky-panky is prohibited, but to say that two passengers did not have their seat belts fastened.
—Steve Lopez, Los Angeles Times, 26 July 2024
Any outlier hanky-panky effort by Republicans would be enjoined by the courts based upon solid precedent.
—Jerry Goldfeder, New York Daily News, 24 July 2024
No hanky-panky, no name calling, no twisting of truths, no bull.
—Patrick Wallis, Baltimore Sun, 24 May 2024
Our inescapable conclusion is that the target of this pitch is being snowed by an acquaintance hoping to climb out of the friend zone for a bout of hanky-panky before moving on.
—Tom Zoellner, SPIN, 21 Feb. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hanky-panky
Noun
-
McCoy is charged with theft by deception, violation of oath of office, and three counts of false statements and writings.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
7 Jan. 2026
-
Harper got fired for the aforementioned deception.—
Alison Herman,
Variety,
6 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
The story then unfolded through the subterfuge of the princess and the care of Morton.—
Simon Perry,
PEOPLE,
28 Oct. 2025
-
Unlike the confrontational drudgery of couples therapy — and aiming to avoid the confrontational finality of divorce — this approach relies on subterfuge.—
Sheri Linden,
HollywoodReporter,
23 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
There was much more to it than that, including some skullduggery along the way.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
22 Dec. 2025
-
The music industry is a notoriously cutthroat business, rife with tales of backstabbing and skullduggery.—
Philip Sherburne,
Pitchfork,
16 Dec. 2025
Noun
-
The tale away from the playing field in recent years has been dizzying, one of soaring costs and debts, of quirks and chicanery unseen elsewhere.—
Chris Weatherspoon,
New York Times,
3 Nov. 2025
-
Another recurring feature of the biggest asset booms is outright chicanery, such as fraudulent accounting, the marketing of worthless securities, and plain old stealing.—
John Cassidy,
New Yorker,
13 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Of course, many Americans vote early and have since the COVID-19 crisis, so his fearmongering about Election Day trickery is pointless.—
Paul Bedard,
The Washington Examiner,
15 Dec. 2025
-
The stunt aims to confirm the robot’s physical capabilities and counter claims of digital trickery, marking an unusual strategy in a sector where technical specifications typically serve as proof.—
Jijo Malayil,
Interesting Engineering,
8 Dec. 2025
Noun
-
Tarabay leads the cast as the titular Ashur, now thriving after his treachery.—
Randall Colburn,
Entertainment Weekly,
3 Nov. 2025
-
And when the surviving crew interrogates the android Ash about his treachery, the book has him pretty much spill the space beans.—
Daniel Dockery,
Vulture,
22 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Something more and something extra in no small part because of Stewart, whose senses of showmanship and gamesmanship animated and fueled the rivalry for so long.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
6 Dec. 2025
-
This would not be a new phenomenon—Billboards’ digital sales have been a target for manipulation for several years now, forcing the company to make several tweaks to tamp down on gamesmanship.—
Andrew R. Chow,
Time,
14 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Of course, the retort is that this would be irritating and exasperating to be continually deluged with alerts about AI deceptiveness.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
24 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Hanky-panky.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hanky-panky. Accessed 8 Jan. 2026.
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