stealthy
Americanadjective
-
stealthier,
comparative
-
stealthiest
superlative
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of stealthy
Explanation
Use the adjective stealthy to describe something or someone that is marked by secrecy, even sneakiness. Ninjas are stealthy, moving quietly and cautiously, which makes them excellent spies. When something is done in a stealthy way, the motivation is almost always to escape from being noticed. If your cat is walking so lightly that you can’t hear her footsteps, she's not necessarily being stealthy on purpose, she’s just a graceful cat. However, if you see your cat creeping forward toward a mouse, trying not to scare it away before she can pounce, then she's definitely being stealthy.
Vocabulary lists containing stealthy
List 1
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"The Monkey's Paw" by W. W. Jacobs
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"The Most Dangerous Game" by Richard Connell
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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.
See Examples For:
It could engender pride and joy at your stealthy maneuvers, indifference, resentment or using the friendship as collateral for a loan.
From MarketWatch ● May 26, 2026
The seamless integration of old and new feels stealthy, and a touch subversive, a doubling-down on the museum’s approach to time as nonlinear, sinuous and delightfully slippery.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 22, 2026
Out of fear of repercussions, many women - and even men - are opting for what they call "stealthy feminism".
From BBC ● Apr. 18, 2026
Officials point to the announcement by Germany and the U.K. last month of a joint project to develop stealthy cruise missiles and hypersonic weapons as an example of the new initiative.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 14, 2026
Nailer made his way deeper into the ship, listening to the creak and rush of water outside, his stealthy footsteps and the rasp of his own loud breathing.
From "Ship Breaker" by Paolo Bacigalupi
Iran has a clear geopolitical motive and a history of targeting the water sector, and the fact that the attacks were readily detected makes a stealthier adversary like China less likely, Kaiser said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 8, 2026
A stealthier and less obvious plan would be financial repression, in which interest rates are held down below the rate of nominal growth of the economy, which consists of real growth plus inflation.
From Barron's ● Apr. 10, 2026
His off-kilter demeanor looks especially dangerous in scenes he shares with Strong or May, whose Empress is stealthier than the strutting warrior she showcased in “The Witcher.”
From Salon ● Nov. 17, 2024
At the same time, the country has been developing a stealthier method of delivering its nuclear warheads through S.L.B.M.s.
From New York Times ● Oct. 18, 2021
It contained only classrooms and so at this hour was perfectly empty, which made us stealthier than ever.
From "A Separate Peace" by John Knowles
She pulled off maybe her stealthiest act of cinematic larceny in “Happiest Season,” a cheerful holiday rom-com in which Plaza, a supporting player, nonetheless positioned herself as a plausible, even preferable, romantic ideal.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2022
The concept with the Columbias is to not only architect something that will be upgraded to accommodate new nuclear missiles as they emerge, but also to construct the stealthiest submarine ever to exist.
From Fox News ● Nov. 11, 2020
I didn’t realize I was being noisy, of course, but from then on I’ve tried to be the stealthiest of note-takers.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 29, 2015
Described as the stealthiest ever built in the UK, the £1bn boat was being put through sea trials and was not armed.
From BBC ● Dec. 30, 2010
Just one of Gebu’s heavy footfalls—even at his stealthiest they were audible—and the whole household would be shouting the alarm.
From "The Golden Goblet" by Eloise Jarvis McGraw
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
