surreptitious

American  

[sur-uhp-tish-uhs] / ˌsɜr əpˈtɪʃ əs /

adjective

1. obtained, done, made, etc., by stealth; secret or unauthorized; clandestine.

   a surreptitious glance.

2. acting in a stealthy way.

3. obtained by subreption; subreptitious.

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surreptitious British  

/ ˌsʌrəpˈtɪʃəs /

adjective

1. done, acquired, etc, in secret or by improper means

2. operating by stealth

3. characterized by fraud or misrepresentation of the truth

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Other Word Forms

• surreptitiously adverb
• surreptitiousness noun

Etymology

Origin of surreptitious

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin surreptīcius “stolen, clandestine,” equivalent to surrept(us), past participle of surripere “to steal,” ( sur- sur- ² + rep-, combining form of rapere “to snatch, plunder” ( rape ¹ ) + -tus past participle suffix) + -īcius adjective suffix ( -itious )

Example Sentences

The move comes as Shell faces scrutiny after his Paramount bosses hired a law firm to investigate his surreptitious dealings with Cipriani, a self-styled “fixer.”

From Los Angeles Times

Just before 7 a.m., a Benin intelligence operative took surreptitious video of five rebel armored vehicles and four pickups leaving QRF headquarters, hazard lights flashing.

From The Wall Street Journal

A surreptitious change of bank details does not bode well for your mother’s estate planning.

From MarketWatch

In a written statement, she claimed "The Mail's Unlawful Acts against me involve landline tapping my phones and recording my live telephone conversations, placing surreptitious mics on my home windows."

From Barron's

She alleges the Mail tapped her landlines and placed "surreptitious mics on my home windows" in an effort to get stories.

From BBC

Related Words

• clandestine
• covert
• furtive
• hush-hush
• unauthorized