Synonyms of secretly

secretly

adverb

as in privately

in a manner intended to prevent knowledge or awareness by others

the girl secretly told her friends about the birthday party so it would be a surprise to the birthday girl

Synonyms & Similar Words

• privately
• confidentially
• in private
• intimately
• backstage
• in camera
• covertly
• clandestinely
• inwardly
• à deux
• tête-à-tête
• surreptitiously
• furtively
• secretively
• stealthily
• sneakily
• conspiratorially
• collusively
• underhandedly
• sotto voce
• underground
• undercover
• offstage
• offscreen
• underhanded
• underhand

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• publicly
• openly

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of secretly

Rupert’s Season 4 story arc kicked off in episode 8 when he was suspected of secretly buying AFC Richmond shares in an attempt to regain control over the football club from his ex-wife Rebecca (Hannah Waddingham). — Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 7 Oct. 2026

Ricketts has argued that he’s best suited to keep delivering for Nebraska and that his opponent is secretly a Democrat. — ABC News, 5 Oct. 2026

What Brian and Dougal don’t know is that Lovat has actually double-crossed the MacKenzies; Lovat has secretly aligned with the Crown to betray the Jacobite forces, marching both men directly into a deadly trap. — Max Gao, HollywoodReporter, 5 Oct. 2026

The actor discovered that his father had secretly sent the producers a screenplay of his own. — Monica Coviello, Vanity Fair, 2 Oct. 2026

Also this year, Cohen’s press officer secretly was recorded by a woman who pretended to be on a date with him. — Dakota Smith, Los Angeles Times, 1 Oct. 2026

And in April 2026, Wired revealed how Madison Square Garden, the home of the New York Knicks and New York Rangers, was secretly using facial recognition technology to identify people entering its venues and compile profiles of them. — Alex Volonte, The Conversation, 1 Oct. 2026

The Arctic Frost investigation was later revealed to have involved Smith’s team secretly obtaining the phone records of several Republican lawmakers. — Jack Birle, The Washington Examiner, 30 Sep. 2026

But production secretly cast Gina as well, running her through the same intense regimen of diet, exercise, dental work, and surgery meant to surprise Kari at the finale’s grand reveal. — Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 29 Sep. 2026