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# dodgy

adjective (dodgy, dodgier, dodgiest) (UK, Australia, NZ, Ireland — informal)

«dodgy» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. (informal) Dishonest or likely to be illegal; not to be trusted: «a dodgy deal». [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dodgy/#m1)
2. (informal) Not working well, unsafe or likely to break: «a dodgy knee», «dodgy brakes». [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dodgy/#m2)
3. (informal) Of poor quality or a bit bad: «a dodgy haircut», «a dodgy curry». [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dodgy/#m3)
4. (informal) Risky or uncertain: «The weather looks dodgy.» [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dodgy/#m4)

### In the lessons

Very common in British, Australian, New Zealand and Irish everyday talk; less common in the US. In safety lessons, «a dodgy website» or «a dodgy message» means a scam to avoid. In stories it shows a character is suspicious or something is about to go wrong. Phrases: «a bit dodgy», «dodgy dealings», «dodgy knee», «dodgy wifi».

### Examples

- (UK) That website looks dodgy — don't type your password in. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dodgy/#x1)
- Grandad has a dodgy knee, so he walks slowly. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dodgy/#x2)
- The wifi is a bit dodgy today. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dodgy/#x3)
- (Australia) He sold us a dodgy bike with no brakes. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dodgy/#x4)
- I had a dodgy kebab and felt sick all night. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dodgy/#x5)
- That's a dodgy plan; we'll get caught. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dodgy/#x6)
- The weather looks dodgy, bring a coat. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dodgy/#x7)

### Note

Informal; in formal writing use «suspicious», «unreliable» or «faulty». Comparative «dodgier», superlative «dodgiest». Related verb «dodge» (to move out of the way, or avoid something).

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «dodgy» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dodgy/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«dodgy» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/dodgy.html) on Mova free.