treacherous

English

Etymology

From Old French trecheros, tricheros (“deceitful”), equivalent to treacher +‎ -ous. See treacher.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈtɹɛt͡ʃəɹəs/, /ˈtɹɛt͡ʃɹəs/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Adjective

treacherous (comparative more treacherous, superlative most treacherous)

1. Exhibiting treachery.
   • 1855, Walt Whitman, Leaves of Grass:

     I see the wife misused by her husband, I see the treacherous seducer of young women, / I mark the ranklings of jealousy and unrequited love attempted to be hid […]

2. Deceitful; inclined to betray.
3. Unreliable; dangerous.

   a treacherous mountain trail

   • 2002, Charles Morris, The San Francisco Calamity:

     […] they stood in the region of perpetual snow, amidst the glittering, treacherous glaciers and crevasses, with vast slippery-pathed precipices yawning round.

Antonyms

• (antonym(s) of “exhibiting treachery”): loyal

Related terms

• treacher
• treachery
• trick
• trickster
• tricky

 

Collocations

Collocations

• treacherous waters
• treacherous terrain
• treacherous journey
• treacherous path
• treacherous ground
• treacherous road
• treacherous place
• treacherous part
• treacherous sister
• treacherous people
• treacherous friend
• treacherous man
• treacherous body
• treacherous heart
• treacherous mountain
• treacherous rocks
• treacherous act
• treacherous conditions
• treacherous currents
• treacherous sea
• treacherous attack
• treacherous murder
• treacherous nature
• treacherous enemy
• treacherous ice
• treacherous conduct

Translations

exhibiting treachery

• Bulgarian: коварен (bg) (kovaren), вероломен (bg) (verolomen)
• Czech: zrádný m
• Danish: forræderisk
• Dutch: verraderlijk (nl)
• Finnish: petollinen (fi)
• French: traître (fr)
• Georgian: მოღალატური (moɣalaṭuri), გამცემლური (gamcemluri)
• German: verräterisch
• Greek: προδοτικός (el) m (prodotikós), δόλιος (el) m (dólios)

  Ancient: δολερός (dolerós), προδοτικός (prodotikós)

• Hungarian: áruló (hu)
• Irish: fealltach, cealgach

  Old Irish: braittech

• Italian: traditore (it) m, sleale (it) m, infido (it) m
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: forrædersk

• Polish: zdradziecki (pl)
• Portuguese: fementido (pt), traiçoeiro (pt) m
• Russian: вероло́мный (ru) (verolómnyj), преда́тельский (ru) (predátelʹskij)
• Spanish: traicionero (es)
• Swedish: förrädisk (sv), trolös (sv)

deceitful; inclined to betray

• Azerbaijani: kəmfürsət
• Bulgarian: предателски (bg) (predatelski)
• Czech: zrádný m
• Finnish: petollinen (fi)
• French: traître (fr)
• Georgian: გამცემლური (gamcemluri)
• German: verräterisch, hinterlistig (de), doppelzüngig (de)
• Greek: δόλιος (el) m (dólios), επίβουλος (el) m (epívoulos), δολερός (dolerós)

  Ancient: προδοτικός (prodotikós)

• Hungarian: álnok (hu)
• Ingrian: pettelikko, salakavala
• Irish: fabhtach, braiteach
• Kazakh: залым (zalym), опасыз (opasyz)
• Latin: perfidus (la)
• Portuguese: traiçoeiro (pt)
• Russian: вероло́мный (ru) (verolómnyj), кова́рный (ru) (kovárnyj)

unreliable; dangerous

• Bulgarian: ненадежден (bg) (nenadežden)
• Czech: zrádný m, ošidný
• Danish: forræderisk
• Finnish: petollinen (fi)
• French: traître (fr)
• Georgian: მუხანათური (muxanaturi)
• German: tückisch (de)
• Greek: ύπουλος (el) m (ýpoulos)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: forrædersk

• Plautdietsch: roakboa
• Portuguese: traiçoeiro (pt)
• Russian: ненадёжный (ru) (nenadjóžnyj), непро́чный (ru) (nepróčnyj)
• Spanish: traicionero (es)
• Swedish: förrädisk (sv)

Further reading

• “treacherous”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “treacherous”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• “treacherous”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.