funny business
Americannoun
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improper or unethical conduct, as deception or trickery.
He won't stand for any funny business here.
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Deceit, treachery, unethical conduct. For example, We suspect their outfit has been up to some funny business. [Colloquial; c. 1880]
Etymology
Origin of funny business
An Americanism dating back to 1880–85
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.
Hmm, any other funny business out there worth looking into …?
From Slate • Sep. 20, 2025
He’s asked them all to visit the Dawn Project in Santa Barbara to evaluate his team’s methods, and to bring their engineers to see if there’s any funny business going on.
From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 3, 2023
But let's not have any more funny business.
From Salon • Jun. 14, 2023
“As long as nobody does any funny business — you’ve got to watch it till the very end.”
From New York Times • Apr. 27, 2023
“All right, we’re going to check in, drop off our stuff, grab some dinner, and then go straight to bed. No funny business tonight. Got it?”
From "Here to Stay" by Sara Farizan
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.