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In canon law and Scots law, subreption is the obtainment of a dispensation or gift by concealment of the truth, whereas obreption is the obtainment of a dispensation or gift by fraud. Both terms are from Latin nouns: respectively, subreptio, meaning "the act of stealing," and obreptio, meaning "the act of stealing upon." The derivation of "subreption" also traces to the Latin verb surripere, meaning "to take away secretly," which is the base of the Anglicized term "surreptitious," a synonym of "stealthy." "Obreption" shares an ancestor with the word reptile: Latin repere, meaning "to creep."
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“Subreption.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/subreption. Accessed 11 Jun. 2026.
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