sleazy
Americanadjective
-
contemptibly low, mean, or disreputable.
sleazy politics.
-
squalid; sordid; filthy; dilapidated.
a sleazy hotel.
-
thin or poor in texture, as a fabric; cheap; flimsy.
a sleazy dress;
a sleazy excuse.
adjective
-
sordid; disreputable
a sleazy nightclub
-
thin or flimsy, as cloth
Other Word Forms
- sleazily adverb
- sleaziness noun
Etymology
Origin of sleazy
First recorded in 1635–45 sleazy for def. 3; of obscure origin; probably unrelated to Silesia; first recorded in 1941 sleazy for defs. 1, 2; perhaps a distinct word
Explanation
Something that is sleazy is low and nasty. It’s a perfect word to describe characters like the sleazy door-to-door con men who cheat old ladies into selling them their jewelry at a deep discount. Sleazy originally meant flimsy, but nowadays it’s only used to describe morally degraded people or places. Usually it refers to sexual behavior, but it is often associated with people trying to swindle others as well. It’s not as bad as perverse or criminal, which suggest that a line has been crossed. But sleazy people make you feel uncomfortable, for sure.
Vocabulary lists containing sleazy
Stargirl
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Speak
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Just Mercy
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Whispers about sleazy behavior generally do not meet the coverage threshold for traditional newsrooms, which are bound by strict ethical standards.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 14, 2026
A judge bounces the notorious plaintiffs firm from the J&J trial for sleazy behavior.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 30, 2026
Rather than risk a military confrontation, they forced American troops to play the role of the sleazy kidnapper sneaking in windows.
From Salon • Jan. 21, 2026
One of the great screen tough guys, he effortlessly switched to comedy in Young Frankenstein and played the sleazy supervillain Lex Luthor in Superman and Superman II.
From BBC • Feb. 27, 2025
We nickname him M.G., a make of car we consider slightly sleazy, a car one of our older cousins might get his Papi to buy him to impress the Island girls.
From "How the García Girls Lost Their Accents" by Julia Alvarez
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
