late 15c., from fish + -y (2). Sense of "shady, questionable" is first recorded 1840, perhaps from the notion of "slipperiness," or of giving off a bad odor.
mod. dubious; questionable; likely to be improper or illegal. (See also smell fishy.) : That was a pretty fishy story you told us.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition. Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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