Language Activator – Dishonest

Dishonest/corrupt/crooked/bent/unscrupulous

Dishonest

(adjective)

someone who is dishonest tells lies or tries to trick people or steal things

.People on welfare are often wrongly characterized as lazy or dishonest

it is dishonest of somebody to do something

It was dishonest of him to suggest that he actually had a degree from Oxford – he was just there for one term

Corrupt

(adjective)

a corrupt politician, official, or police officer uses their power in a dishonest way for their own advantage, for example by accepting money from people in return for helping them

.Perez said that there were virtually no procedures in place to weed out corrupt officials

Crooked

(adjective)

someone who is crooked is involved in illegal or dishonest business activities

A crooked civil servant sold hundreds of British passports on the black market, a court heard yesterday

Crooked (business) deal

The land was obtained in a crooked business deal between politicians and an Arizona savings and loans association

Crook

(countable noun)

someone who is involved in dishonest and usually criminal activities, especially someone who gets money by cheating people

.Collins called the governor a crook and said he should be removed from office

Bent

(adjective)

British spoken use this about someone in an official position, who uses their power illegally or dishonestly

.Half the inspectors here are bent

Unscrupulous

(adjective)

someone who is unscrupulous uses dishonest and unfair methods to get what they want, and does not care if they harm other people

?Isn’t it time we did something to protect the elderly from unscrupulous business people

:Practice

:Fill in the blanks with appropriate words

N1. Morgan admitted that some of his actions may have been …………., but he denied doing anything illegal
.N2. A few ………….. coppers can give the whole police force a bad name
 .N3. In the 1970s, the city’s police force was among the most …………… in the nation
.N4. …………. customs officials have helped the drug trade to flourish
.N5. A few dealers give the used car trade a bad name. a ………….. politician

:Answers

Unscrupulous/ bent/ corrupt/ Corrupt/ dishonest