sospechoso
/sospeˈt͡ʃoso/
The English word "shady" is translated into Spanish as sospechoso.
The word sospechoso can be used to convey the sense of something being suspicious or questionable. While 'sospechoso' can mean 'suspicious' (feeling that something is wrong), it is the standard way to describe a person or situation that is 'shady' or untrustworthy.
Meaning: not trustworthy, unfit to be seen or known (adj)
How does it change in a sentence?
The adjective sospechoso changes its ending to agree with the gender and number of the noun it describes: use sospechosa for feminine singular, sospechosos for masculine plural and sospechosas for feminine plural.
How do you pronounce it?
/sospeˈtʃoso/
Did you know?
- While sospechoso is the standard term for 'shady', the word turbio is used in street slang to describe a person or situation that feels morally 'muddy' or 'cloudy'.
- The word sospechoso shares its root with the English word 'suspect', both coming from the Latin suspectāre, which meant 'to look up at' or 'examine'.
- The suffix -oso in sospechoso functions much like the English '-ful'. It transforms the root into an adjective meaning 'full of' suspicion.
Examples in context
- Ese vendedor parece poco confiable.That salesman seems untrustworthy.
- Tengo mis dudas sobre ese negocio. Me parece muy sospechoso.I have my doubts about that business. It seems very shady to me.
- No te fíes de él, es un tipo chueco.Don't trust him, he's a shady character.
- Ese hombre tiene un pasado turbio.That man has a shady past.
- Ese negocio parece muy sospechoso.That business looks very shady.
- Ese hombre parece muy sospechoso.That man looks very shady.
- No quiero entrar en ese lugar sospechoso.I don't want to enter that shady place.
- Sus negocios son bastante sospechosos.His businesses are quite shady.
Example conversation
Elena and Mateo are walking down a dark street at night.
- Elena¿Viste a ese hombre tan sospechoso?Did you see that very shady man?
- MateoSí, Elena, es un poco inquietante.Yes, Elena, he is a bit unsettling.
- ElenaMejor caminemos más rápido.We should walk faster.
- MateoTienes razón, vámonos de aquí.You're right, let's get out of here.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry sospechoso, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries sospechoso, CC BY-SA 4.0.
