SHADY: Synonyms and Related Words. What is Another Word for SHADY?

Need another word that means the same as “shady”? Find 26 synonyms and 30 related words for “shady” in this overview.

The synonyms of “Shady” are: fishy, funny, suspect, suspicious, shadowed, shadowy, umbrageous, shaded, dark, dim, sunless, questionable, dubious, doubtful, of dubious character, disreputable, untrustworthy, dishonest, dishonourable, devious, slippery, tricky, underhand, unscrupulous, irregular, unethical

Shady as an Adjective

Definitions of "Shady" as an adjective

According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, “shady” as an adjective can have the following definitions:

• Filled with shade.
• Of questionable taste or morality.
• Quiet, dark, or concealed.
• Situated in or full of shade.
• Giving shade from sunlight.
• Unscrupulous.
• Of questionable honesty or legality.
• Of doubtful honesty or legality.
• Not as expected.

Synonyms of "Shady" as an adjective (26 Words)

dark	Having a dark hue. A dark day.
devious	Showing a skilful use of underhand tactics to achieve goals. They have devious ways of making money.
dim	Made dim or less bright. Dim memories.
dishonest	Deceptive or fraudulent; disposed to cheat or defraud or deceive. He gave the editor a dishonest account of events.
dishonourable	Bringing shame or disgrace on someone or something. His crimes are petty and dishonourable.
disreputable	Lacking respectability in character or behavior or appearance. He was heavy grubby and vaguely disreputable.
doubtful	Feeling uncertain about something. I was doubtful of my judgement.
dubious	Hesitating or doubting. I was rather dubious about the whole idea.
fishy	Not as expected. I m convinced there is something fishy going on.
funny	Not as expected. There was something funny going on.
irregular	Not occurring at a regular rate or fixed intervals. Highly irregular behavior.
of dubious character	Not convinced.
questionable	Doubtful as regards truth or validity. Questionable motives.
shaded	(of pictures or drawings) drawn or painted with degrees or gradations of shadow. Shaded avenues.
shadowed	Filled with shade. The surface of the pond is dark and shadowed.
shadowy	Filled with shade. Shadowy figures in the gloom.
slippery	(of a surface or object) difficult to hold firmly or stand on because it is smooth, wet, or slimy. The word intended is a decidedly slippery one.
sunless	Filled or abounding with clouds. The windowless sunless headquarters.
suspect	Not as expected. A suspect package was found on the platform.
suspicious	Not as expected. He was suspicious of her motives.
tricky	(of a task, problem, etc.) requiring care and skill because difficult or awkward. Tricky Dick.
umbrageous	Filled with shade. Umbrageous at the loss of their territory.
underhand	Acting or done in a secret or dishonest way. Underhand dealings.
unethical	Not conforming to approved standards of social or professional behavior. Unethical business practices.
unscrupulous	Having or showing no moral principles; not honest or fair. Unscrupulous politicos who would be happy to sell their country in order to gain power.
untrustworthy	Not able to be relied on as honest or truthful. Thomas considered her to be devious and untrustworthy.

Usage Examples of "Shady" as an adjective

• Her shady past intrigued him.
• The shady side of the street.
• He was involved in his grandmother's shady deals.
• They sprawled under a shady carob tree.
• He established a dummy company through which he laundered vast sums of cash from shady middlemen and arms dealers.
• A shady deal.
• Shady woods.
• A shady part of town.

Associations of "Shady" (30 Words)

ambiguous	Open to two or more interpretations; or of uncertain nature or significance; or (often) intended to mislead. Ambiguous words.
ambiguously	So as to be open to doubt or uncertainty. A peculiar ambiguously remembered landscape where past and present seem repeatedly confounded.
ambivalent	Uncertain or unable to decide about what course to follow. An ambivalent attitude to Europe.
blur	Make unclear indistinct or blurred. It happened so fast it was just a blur.
blurred	Not clear or distinct; hazy. A landscape of blurred outlines.
dark	Having a dark hue. A dark scowl.
darkling	Uncannily or threateningly dark or obscure. A darkling glance.
darkness	Night. His lectures dispelled the darkness.
dim	Make dim or lusterless. The lights dimmed and the curtain rose.
dimly	With a faint light; not brightly. I can only dimly remember the 1960s.
doubt	Consider unlikely or have doubts about. Who can doubt the value and necessity of these services.
doubtful	Not known with certainty. It is doubtful whether these schemes have any lasting effect.
dubious	Not to be relied upon; suspect. Timeshare has been brought into disrepute by dubious sales methods.
dusky	Used in names of animals with dark coloration e g dusky dolphin dusky warbler. Dusky red.
equivocal	(of a person) using ambiguous or evasive language. He has always been equivocal about the meaning of his lyrics.
faint	Feeling weak and dizzy and close to losing consciousness. A faint aroma.
incredulous	(of a person or their manner) unwilling or unable to believe something. An incredulous gasp.
indeterminate	(of a judicial sentence) not of a fixed length but dependent on the convicted person’s conduct. An indeterminate future.
murkiness	An atmosphere in which visibility is reduced because of a cloud of some substance.
opaque	An opaque thing. Bottles filled with a pale opaque liquid.
questionable	Doubtful as regards truth or validity. Questionable motives.
shadowy	Filled with shade. Shadowy figures in the gloom.
skeptical	Marked by or given to doubt. A skeptical listener.
skepticism	The disbelief in any claims of ultimate knowledge.
suspicious	Causing one to have the idea or impression that someone or something is questionable, dishonest, or dangerous. He was suspicious of her motives.
tenebrous	Dark; shadowy or obscure. A tenebrous cave.
uncertain	Lacking or indicating lack of confidence or assurance. Uncertain of his convictions.
uncertainty	The state of being uncertain. The uncertainty of the outcome.
unclear	Not clear to the mind. Users are still unclear about what middleware does.
vaguely	Slightly. He looked vaguely familiar.