in bad faith

Idioms

With the intention of deceiving someone or doing harm, as in I'm sure they were acting in bad faith and never planned to pay us. This expression was first recorded in 1631. The antonym, in good faith, meaning “sincerely and honestly,” as in I signed that contract in good faith, dates from about 1350.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Among its accusations, the labor organization also alleged that guild management has “surveilled workers for union activity, terminated union supporters, and engaged in bad faith surface bargaining.”

From Los Angeles Times

Among its accusations, the labor group also said that guild management has “surveilled workers for union activity, terminated union supporters, and engaged in bad faith surface bargaining.”

From Los Angeles Times

Unionized Post-Gazette editorial staff have been on strike since October 2022, pushing for better wages and healthcare benefits and accusing the company of years of bargaining in bad faith.

From The Wall Street Journal

"I must also stress that some tweets have been completely misunderstood, seemingly in bad faith," he added.

From Barron's

Fattah said he took allegations of antisemitism "very seriously" while arguing some of the posts had been "misunderstood, seemingly in bad faith".

From BBC

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023