surreptitious

Advancedzipf 2.28

Pronunciation

/ˌsʌrəpˈtɪʃəs/(sur-up-TISH-us)

Part of speech

adjectiveformal

Chinese

偷偷摸摸的；秘密的

Definition

Kept secret, especially because it would not be approved of.

Word family

  • surreptitiously/ˌsʌrəpˈtɪʃəsli/(adv)偷偷摸摸地

Collocations

  • surreptitious glance
  • surreptitious recording
  • surreptitious meeting
  • surreptitious entry

Examples

  1. 1.She took a surreptitious glance at her phone during the meeting. (sneaky)
  2. 2.The journalist made surreptitious recordings of the corrupt official. (secret, unauthorized)

Synonyms

  • covert/ˈkʌvɜːt/— hidden, especially by authority
  • clandestine/klænˈdɛstɪn/— secret, often illicit
  • furtive/ˈfɜːtɪv/— nervously secretive

Etymology

from Latin "surreptitius" — sub- (under) + rapere (to seize) — seized from underneath, done by stealth