How to Use shifty in a Sentence

shifty

adjective
  • Some have just become kind of shifty.
    — David Frum, The Atlantic, 18 Feb. 2026
  • Much more than her shifty son, anyway.
    — Maggie Fremont, Vulture, 6 Mar. 2026
  • But there’s a glint in the eye that betrays some shifty secrets.
    — Angela Hill, The Mercury News, 5 July 2019
  • Metchie is a shifty, quick pass-catcher with upside.
    — Mike Kaye updated March 11, Charlotte Observer, 11 Mar. 2026
  • Neely-Watley can take it to the house at any time with his shifty moves.
    — Perry A. Farrell, Detroit Free Press, 12 May 2018
  • Waters is a shifty guard who is a tremendous passer out of pick and roll.
    — Amie Just, nola.com, 20 June 2019
  • The shifty Texas wideout should vie for time in the slot this season.
    — Tom Green | [email protected], al, 8 Apr. 2022
  • McLaughlin is the shifty home-run hitter.
    — Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 17 Aug. 2025
  • Quick and shifty enough to miss contact in a phone booth with late adjustments.
    — USA TODAY, 28 Apr. 2021
  • Her shifty husband abandoned her, leaving her to raise his teenage son.
    — Carole E. Barrowman, Journal Sentinel, 30 June 2022
  • Pritchard is shifty and swaggering, with a quick release and a smooth pump fake.
    — Steven Louis Goldstein, The Athletic, 23 Feb. 2025
  • John seemed to have no where to run, but the shifty receiver wiggled his way free.
    — Randy McRoberts, baltimoresun.com, 16 Nov. 2019
  • And the staff lined up just to say goodbye / Tiny tear in his shifty little eye.
    — George Varga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 Apr. 2025
  • Today’s consumers are whip-smart and can see right through shifty non-apologies.
    — Expert Panel®, Forbes, 15 June 2022
  • His first return was a good one, a show of his shifty running ability.
    — Jeff Greer, The Courier-Journal, 23 Sep. 2017
  • But the world seems to have gotten used to Trump’s shifty rhetorical style.
    — Mattathias Schwartz, The Intercept, 22 May 2017
  • Why else would Lee tell someone as shifty as Ray so much about what’s going on?
    — Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 1 Oct. 2025
  • The shifty receiver just picked the ball up and went 97 yards for a touchdown to start the game.
    — Marcus Gutierrez, Houston Chronicle, 26 Sep. 2020
  • Thursday’s standalone broadcast gives us two shifty sides with top-10 paces so far.
    — Steven Louis Goldstein, New York Times, 11 Nov. 2025
  • The defense’s first task will be to corral the shifty Tagovailoa.
    — Tim Bielik, cleveland, 12 Sep. 2021
  • The lobs disappear and shifty dribble-drives into the paint aren’t as frequent.
    — Chris Fedor, cleveland, 1 Feb. 2022
  • The freshman was shifty and athletic, and was able to still make plays when forced to scramble out of pocket.
    — Norma Gonzalez, The Salt Lake Tribune, 26 Sep. 2021
  • There is the shifty owner of the industrial park where Mark’s life takes a turn for the (even) worse.
    — San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 Aug. 2019
  • The shifty rookie carried the ball 12 times for 60 yards and scored a red zone touchdown.
    — Steve Gardner, USA TODAY, 15 Sep. 2020
  • When Myles Bryant pulled off a couple of shifty punt returns, his teammates went nuts and ran to him.
    — Jim McBride, BostonGlobe.com, 11 Aug. 2022
  • Wiggins wears a shifty bowler hat and takes notes on Jol and Louisa, then reports back to Frances.
    — Alice Burton, Vulture, 20 Apr. 2026
  • Then a trip across the Pennsylvania Turnpike was just rough and shifty.
    — Scott Sturgis, chicagotribune.com, 8 Nov. 2019
  • To create that kind of lane, Harden relies on one of the shiftiest off-the-dribble games in the league.
    — Rob Mahoney, SI.com, 18 May 2018
  • His 29 catches on the season show that the coaching staff has placed its trust in the shifty wide receiver.
    — Zac Blackerby, ajc, 2 Oct. 2017
  • But Traore left shooting space between him and the shifty 6-foot guard, drawing Miller’s ire.
    — David Eckert, Austin American Statesman, 3 Jan. 2026

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'shifty.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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