supercherie

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UK/suːˌpɛ(ɹ)ʃəˈɹiː/

noun

Foul play; an attack made by deceit.

OriginMiddle French supercherie ← Italian soperchieria →
First used 16th–17th c.Scrabble 18
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Meanings

nounsupercherie (countable and uncountable, plural supercheries)

plural supercheries · alternative superchery · alternative superchiery

  1. countableobsoleteuncountableFoul play; an attack made by deceit.First known use 16th–17th c.

    it is a Superchiery,[…] as being wel armed, to charge a man who hath but a piece of a sword, or being sound and strong, to set upon a man sore hurt.

    1603, Michel de Montaigne, chapter 27, in John Florio, transl., The Essayes […], book II, London: […] Val[entine] Simmes for Edward Blount […], →OCLC
  2. countableuncountableDeception, deceit; an instance of fraud.First known use 17th c.

    According to France's foreign minister, the British foreign secretary is guilty of perpetrating a supercherie.

    2005 June 23, Timothy Garton Ash, The Guardian
    1 more example

    We[…]should certainly deny to any teacher of morals, in any age, who resorted to such ‘supercherie’ and charlatanism, any very high place among the instructors and benefactors of mankind.

    1863, Henry Rogers, Critique on M. Renan's Vie de Jésus

Origin

  1. Italiansoperchieria
  2. Middle Frenchsupercherie
  3. Englishsupercherie

Borrowed from Middle French supercherie, itself borrowed from Italian soperchieria.

More words from Middle French, Italian

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

supercherie. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/supercherie

MLA

“supercherie.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/supercherie. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “supercherie,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/supercherie.

Source: supercherie on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.