lurks

verb

present tense third-person singular of lurk
1
as in sneaks
to move about in a sly or secret manner we caught a glimpse of someone lurking around the corner

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in hides
to remain out of sight watch out for snakes lurking in the tall grass

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of lurks Two people in Florida and five in Louisiana have died from vibrio vulnificus, which lurks in warm coastal waters and can enter the body through open wounds or from eating raw shellfish. — Mark Strassmann, CBS News, 10 Aug. 2026 But amid the crooning local singers and walks down memory lane, trouble lurks. — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 29 July 2026 But now, China lurks just offstage, preparing to bring the steel era’s industrial logic back into the story, using scale, subsidies and price pressure to test how durable today’s AI fortunes really are. — Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 27 July 2026 Those combinations are concentrated through the middle, where Messi generally lurks, with Argentina directing a smaller share of their passing towards the flanks than any other team. — Dermot Corrigan, New York Times, 20 July 2026 In Elliott’s Connecticut, the governor would send a busload of stern but compassionate counselors to protect workers hiding in their office where a gunman lurks. — Kevin Rennie, Hartford Courant, 18 July 2026 As iconography that could unify through recognition that diversity lurks in everyone, the art was truly ahead of its time, and has become more necessary than ever. — Jonathon Keats, Forbes.com, 29 June 2026 Jamon has left the past behind, but danger still lurks. — Luca Evans, Denver Post, 21 June 2026 At the heart of our home galaxy lurks a gigantic black hole that’s more than a trillion times heavier than Earth, with all that mass stuffed into a region that is about 2,000 times wider than our planet. — Jeanna Bryner, Scientific American, 4 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lurks
  1. sneaks
  2. hides
  3. slips
  4. lies
Verb
  • The film cannily tugs on the heartstrings, pulls off classic slapstick comedy and sneaks obscure film references into its visuals.
    — David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 12 Aug. 2026
  • While the hilarity quotient is high, Chinn also sneaks in observant commentary on class, race, and gender—and the chemistry among the four leads is absolutely off the charts.
    — Judy Berman, Time, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of sneaks
Verb
  • Furthermore, cash's nominal safety hides inflation risk, eroding purchasing power.
    — Jason Kirsch, Forbes.com, 18 Aug. 2026
  • The target hides in a food truck, gets on another plane, flies to England, hides on another food truck and sneaks back on Air Force One.
    — Voice of the People, New York Daily News, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of hides
Verb
  • That uncertainty extends to the film itself, which slips between psychological drama, comedy and magical realism without settling comfortably into any of them.
    — Callum McLennan, Variety, 15 Aug. 2026
  • The National Safety Council notes that slips, trips, and falls are highly preventable when hazards are clearly identified, which makes independent witness statements about the floor’s condition especially useful.
    — Miami Herald, Miami Herald, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of slips
Verb
  • Across the river lies the Theban Necropolis, home to the Valley of the Kings, the Valley of the Queens, Queen Hatshepsut’s spectacular mortuary temple and the towering figures of the Colossi of Memnon.
    — Jamie Carter, Forbes.com, 16 Aug. 2026
  • But perhaps the project’s greatest surprise lies underground in the form of a theatrical wellness complex.
    — Kathryn O’Shea-Evans, Robb Report, 16 Aug. 2026
Definition of lies

Browse Nearby Words

lurking
lurks
luscious
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Cite this Entry

“Lurks.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lurks. Accessed 20 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on lurks

Nglish: Translation of lurks for Spanish Speakers

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