cloak-and-dagger

[ klohk-uh n-dag-er ]

/ ˈkloʊk ənˈdæg ər /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR cloak-and-dagger ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

pertaining to, characteristic of, or dealing in espionage or intrigue, especially of a romantic or dramatic kind.

Nearby words

cloacal membrane, cloacal plate, cloacitis, cloak, cloak fern, cloak-and-dagger, cloak-and-suiter, cloak-and-sword, cloakroom, cloam, clobber

Origin of cloak-and-dagger

First recorded in 1835–45

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for cloak-and-dagger

But there is something to be learned by the cloak-and-dagger world from Yousef and Ben Yitzhak.
When the Son of Hamas Spied for Israel|Nina Strochlic|August 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He went on to say that he was the intended target because of all his cloak-and-dagger work inside Iran.
Georgetown Socialite Viola Drath Killed by Assassin, Husband Claims|Sandra McElwaine|November 19, 2011|DAILY BEAST
Plame, the cloak-and-dagger CIA veteran, took a slightly different position.
Bush's Biggest Critics Gun for Obama|Lloyd Grove|October 28, 2010|DAILY BEAST
It has been said of Time, earlier in these pages, the cloak-and-dagger sort he is, that stalks and pounces.
This Freedom|A. S. M. Hutchinson

He climbed out, standing alongside the bed in his shorts, wondering at the Colonel's cloak-and-dagger approach.
First on the Moon|Jeff Sutton
You risked your life on cloak-and-dagger missions; let the shore-bound fancy dans do the drudgery.
The Syndic|C.M. Kornbluth
Joe said politely: “I heard there was cloak-and-dagger stuff going on.”
Space Platform|Murray Leinster

British Dictionary definitions for cloak-and-dagger

cloak-and-dagger

noun

(modifier) characteristic of or concerned with intrigue and espionage

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012