Dictionary

dicey en · ADJ

Pronunciation

• /ˈdʌɪ̯si/
• /ˈdaɪsi/
• (Australia) audio

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *de Proto-Indo-European *-h₁ Proto-Indo-European *déh₁ Proto-Italic *dē Latin dē Old French de Proto-Indo-European *-ós Proto-Indo-European *-os Proto-Indo-European *-ós Proto-Indo-European *-ós Proto-Indo-European *-ós Proto-Indo-European *-ós Proto-Indo-European *-os Proto-Italic *-os Latin -os Proto-Indo-European *h₁ey- Proto-Indo-European *-ts Proto-Indo-European *-h₁its Proto-Italic *-its Latin -es Old French -s Old French desbor. Middle English dys English dice Proto-Indo-European *-kos Proto-Germanic *-gaz Proto-West Germanic *-g Old English -iġ Middle English -y English -y English dicey From dice + -y.

Meanings

1. Fraught with danger.
2. Of uncertain, risky outcome.
   • This was a dicey stratagem because all too often the support Britain rendered played into Zanu-PF's anti-colonial constructions. 2009 June 17, Blessing-Miles Tendi, “Tsvangirai's dicey strategy”, in The Guardian:
   • Devouring the flesh of animals killed on roadways can be a bit dicey. 2012, Jonathan Deutsch, Natalya Murakhver, editors, They Eat That?: A Cultural Encyclopedia of Weird and Exotic Food from Around the World, page 161:
   • For sure, the economic and fiscal prospects for an independent Scotland look a lot dicier than they did three years ago. 2017 March 4, John Harris, “Hard Brexit is making the case for Scottish independence”, in The Guardian:
3. Of doubtful or uncertain efficacy, provenance, etc.; dodgy.
   • But on abortion, one of his diciest issues, his repeated commitment to follow Trump's lead seemed to satisfy ardent anti-abortion members, although several Democrats did their best to remind those colleagues that Kennedy's personal values have been in stark contrast with their own. 2025 January 31, Caitlin Owens, “Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s confirmation is a coin toss”, in Axios:
   • Some more birds were scared off by the dicey smell. The man was dying gradually. 2011, Keemholems Ojei, The Narcodollar Chieftains: The Narcotics Godfathers, page 101:
   • If you were in the business of selling dicey meat, the invention of the telephone rocked your world. 2011, Jay Baer, Amber Naslund, The NOW Revolution: 7 Shifts to Make Your Business Faster, Smarter and More Social, page xv:
   • As if I'm not a bit past that, Clem thought, as if with his dicey ticker and all he shouldn′t be taking life pretty quietly, instead of waking with the old memoroes disturbing him. 1992, Vincent O'Sullivan, “The Witness Man”, in Palms and Minarets: Selected Stories, page 95:

Forms

Deriveds

diceyness · dicily

Synonyms

iffy · chancy

Translations (34)

tr gayrimuayyen (of uncertain, risky outcome) · fr risqué (of uncertain, risky outcome) · fr au résultat incertain (of uncertain, risky outcome) · bg рискован (of uncertain, risky outcome) · nl riskant (of uncertain, risky outcome) · tr müphem (of uncertain, risky outcome) · bg потенциално опасен (fraught with danger) · ru опа́сный (fraught with danger) · cs ošemetný (of uncertain, risky outcome) · es peligroso (fraught with danger) · de riskant (of uncertain, risky outcome) · fr risqué (fraught with danger) · cs zrádný (of uncertain, risky outcome) · sv riskabel (of uncertain, risky outcome) · fr périlleux (fraught with danger) · nl gevaarlijk (fraught with danger) · cs nebezpečný (fraught with danger) · cs riskantní (of uncertain, risky outcome) · ru рискованый (of uncertain, risky outcome) · sh rizičan (of uncertain, risky outcome) · sh riskantan (of uncertain, risky outcome) · nl onzeker (of uncertain, risky outcome) · tr belirsiz (of uncertain, risky outcome) · es dudoso (of uncertain, risky outcome) · es arriesgado (of uncertain, risky outcome) · es incierto (of uncertain, risky outcome) · es peligroso (of uncertain, risky outcome) · es riesgoso (fraught with danger) · de brenzlig (fraught with danger) · sv farlig (fraught with danger) · tr riskli (fraught with danger) · nl bedreigend (fraught with danger) · ro riscant (of uncertain, risky outcome) · sh potencijalno opasan (fraught with danger)