noun
dirty trick; sinister scheme; sly plot
Refers to a cunning, underhanded plan or scheme, often with a negative moral judgment. Used in formal or written contexts.
敵の奸策を見破った。
We saw through the enemy's sinister scheme.
彼は奸策を巡らせて政敵を失脚させた。
He hatched a dirty trick to bring down his political rival.
Compound of 奸 (kan, 'cunning, wicked') and 策 (saku, 'plan, scheme'). The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the word is formed from Sino-Japanese morphemes.