hinky

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hinky

/ˈhɪŋki/

Rhymes with -ɪŋki

Where it comes from

Possibly from obsolete Scots hink, from Old Norse hinka (“to limp or hobble”), probably not from Old English inca (“doubt; suspicion”). Possibly from hank (“a loop or coil or anything that curbs or restrains”). Possibly from African-American usage: hincty or hinkty.

adjective hinkier · more hinky · hinkiest · most hinky · hinkey · hinkty

colloquial Acting suspiciously; strange, unusual; acting in a manner as if having something to hide, or seemingly crooked. I thought he might be acting hinky.
colloquial Suspicious (of something). I think they get hinky if everything is shaking around and they can't see much.
colloquial Dishonest; sketchy; shady
colloquial, derogatory Weird; nonstandard. 1968 Sept 21: Officer Pete Malloy, as written by Jack Webb, intuiting that a citizen’s report of burglars casing the neighborhood is probably legitimate, Adam-12, Season 1, Episode 1 at 9:32, http://www.imdb.com/rg/VIDEO_PLAY/LINK//video/hulu/vi4018208793/ This [call] shouldn’t be hinky – I’ve got a
colloquial Unreliable; wonky
colloquial Snobbish; haughty

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MLA

"hinky." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/hinky. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

hinky. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/hinky

Chicago

"hinky." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/hinky.

BibTeX

@misc{hinky_2026,
  title = {hinky},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/hinky},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}