SHIFTINESS

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does shiftiness mean? 

• SHIFTINESS (noun)
  The noun SHIFTINESS has 2 senses:

1. the quality of being a slippery rascal

2. the quality of being changeable in direction

  Familiarity information: SHIFTINESS used as a noun is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• SHIFTINESS (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The quality of being a slippery rascal

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

rascality; shiftiness; slipperiness; trickiness

Hypernyms ("shiftiness" is a kind of...):

dishonesty (the quality of being dishonest)

Derivation:

shifty (characterized by insincerity or deceit; evasive)

Sense 2

Meaning:

The quality of being changeable in direction

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Context example:

the shiftiness of the wind caused the boat to veer unpredictably

Hypernyms ("shiftiness" is a kind of...):

changeability; changeableness (the quality of being changeable; having a marked tendency to change)

Derivation:

shifty (changing position or direction)

 Context examples 

But there was no shyness or shiftiness about Berks’s fighting.

(Rodney Stone, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)