lurk

verb

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\ ˈlərk

lurked; lurking; lurks

Definition of lurk

intransitive verb

1a : to lie in wait in a place of concealment especially for an evil purpose someone out there lurking in the shadows

b : to move furtively or inconspicuously shall I lurk about this country like a thief?— Henry Fielding

c : to persist in staying the excitement of the first act still lurking in the air— Richard Fletcher Something about the smile lurking on Malfoy's face during the next week made Harry, Ron, and Hermione very nervous.— J. K. Rowling

2a : to be concealed but capable of being discovered specifically : to constitute a latent threat What evil lurks in the hearts of men?

b : to lie hidden Malaria lurked in the marshes.

3 : to read messages without contributing on an Internet discussion forum (see forum sense 1c) (such as a newsgroup or chat room) or social media platform (such as Facebook or Twitter) You can tweet as much as you want or lurk without comment, though consistent tweeting and audience engagement are key to attracting and keeping followers.— Charlotte Abbott

Other Words from lurk Synonyms Choose the Right Synonym More Example Sentences Learn More about lurk

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Choose the Right Synonym for lurk

lurk, skulk, slink, sneak mean to behave so as to escape attention. lurk implies a lying in wait in a place of concealment and often suggests an evil intent. suspicious men lurking in alleyways skulk suggests more strongly cowardice or fear or sinister intent. something skulking in the shadows slink implies moving stealthily often merely to escape attention. slunk around the corner sneak may add an implication of entering or leaving a place or evading a difficulty by furtive or underhanded methods. sneaked out early

Examples of lurk in a Sentence

She could tell there was someone out there lurking in the shadows. we caught a glimpse of someone lurking around the corner

Recent Examples on the Web But behind it lurk the same questions that haunt the medium itself, the answers always imminent, never knowable: What happened to my people? — Sebastian Smee, Washington Post, "It’s time we looked at Iran through the same lens as its best photographers," 15 Jan. 2020 Overnight satellite ️ imagery shows the next storm system lurking off the #WestCoast. — Alejandro Serrano, SFChronicle.com, "Freezing temps, snow and possible thunderstorms on tap for Bay Area," 15 Jan. 2020 But if Dare Me’s mystery enhances the danger lurking within its central relationship, the figure-skating drama’s attempts at being gritty fail to deliver meaningful messaging and only muddle the plot. — Shirley Li, The Atlantic, "Female Athletes Get New Representation on TV," 14 Jan. 2020 The director’s camera, too, lurks down hallways and peers around trees, a hushed witness to the characters’ anguish. — Isaac Feldberg, Fortune, "What to Watch (and Skip) in Theaters and on HBO This Weekend," 10 Jan. 2020 Rigorous bleaching and disinfection measures can sometimes fail to kill off lurking fungi. — Beth Mole, Ars Technica, "Deadly fungus became resistant to all existing drugs in 3 unlinked US patients," 9 Jan. 2020 Toxic nationalist movements have risen across the globe; politics in democratic nations have increasingly polarized; wealth gaps continue to expand; and the specter of climate change lurking at a remove has become an actual monster inside the house. — Elijah Wolfson, Time, "20 Ways the World Got Better in 2019, in Charts," 23 Dec. 2019 The fifth-year veteran, originally drafted by Browns GM John Dorsey in Kansas City, has 27 career interceptions and is always lurking. — Dan Labbe, cleveland, "Browns and Ravens have gone in different directions since September; here’s some ways they have changed," 19 Dec. 2019 Through the project website (now taken offline) people could submit a photo and see terms lurking in the AI model trained using the dataset. — Will Knight, Wired, "AI Is Biased. Here's How Scientists Are Trying to Fix It," 19 Dec. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'lurk.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.