up to one's old tricks

English

Alternative forms

• up to one's usual tricks
• up to one's tricks

Prepositional phrase

up to one's old tricks

1. (informal) Engaging in mischievous behavior considered typical of oneself.

See also

• up to no good

Further reading

• “up to one's old tricks”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
• “up to one's old tricks”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
• “up to your old usual tricks” (US) / “up to your old usual tricks” (UK) in Macmillan English Dictionary.
• “somebody is up to their old tricks” in Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, Longman.