Meaning & use

fishy

adjective·Everyday

Last updated

Seeming suspicious or dishonest; also, resembling or smelling of fish.

See it in a sentence

Something about his story sounded fishy, so the detective kept asking questions.

The kitchen still smelled fishy hours after dinner was over.

A note on using this word

The 'suspicious' meaning is informal and used mainly in casual conversation, not formal writing.

Words with a similar meaning

Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.

Words with an opposite meaning

Another way to use it

2. adjective

Having the smell, taste, or appearance of fish.

The sauce had a faintly fishy taste that not everyone enjoyed.

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “fishy”, then compare your use with the examples above.

Your draft stays on this page and is not sent anywhere.