1
as in shady
given to acting in secret and to concealing one's intentions
his opponent's sneaky campaign manager was clearly up to something
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in sneak
undertaken or done so as to escape being observed or known by others
a sneaky plan to replace the priceless painting with a copy
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of sneaky
The sneaky Sheltie disappeared from the sitter in the March 7 video.
—
Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 June 2025
Though the two would've kept in touch over the years, it would be revealed in episode 2 that the sneaky little brown-noser with a hidden agenda was happily engaged to another woman and expecting his first child.
—Mekishana Pierre Published, EW.com, 11 June 2025
Fraud Detection: No, Elon Musk Is Not Sponsoring You
Some fraud is obvious, but some fraud is sneaky.
—Raghu Para, Forbes.com, 6 June 2025
The kitten tries his best to protect his food from the sneaky intruder, and the raccoon does eventually go away, but not before grabbing a pile of the feline's kibble and some of his water.
—Maria Azzurra Volpe, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for sneaky
Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 June 2025
Though the two would've kept in touch over the years, it would be revealed in episode 2 that the sneaky little brown-noser with a hidden agenda was happily engaged to another woman and expecting his first child.
—Mekishana Pierre Published, EW.com, 11 June 2025
Fraud Detection: No, Elon Musk Is Not Sponsoring You
Some fraud is obvious, but some fraud is sneaky.
—Raghu Para, Forbes.com, 6 June 2025
The kitten tries his best to protect his food from the sneaky intruder, and the raccoon does eventually go away, but not before grabbing a pile of the feline's kibble and some of his water.
—Maria Azzurra Volpe, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for sneaky
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sneaky
Adjective
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One of them is Martin Krebs (Rupert Friend), a shady pharmaceuticals bigwig who wants to develop the world’s most effective heart medication using dinosaur blood samples.—
Tom Gliatto,
People.com,
30 June 2025
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Old-school bedding impatiens will bloom continuously in a shady spot.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
29 June 2025
Adjective
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Demonstrating a talent for working in fluent french peppered with a british accent, the actor delivers one of his most indelible acting turns as the sly, wry, and wise business mogul-turned- butler who finds new purpose in life working on the other side of the fence.—
Pete Hammond,
Deadline,
3 July 2025
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The sly twist from humility to confidence — all delivered with a not self-aware nonchalant shrug to the crowd — drives home how much more powerful the song is, in every case, than its writer or performer.—
Marcus K. Dowling,
The Tennessean,
2 July 2025
Adjective
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American veterans and others have traveled to smaller, clandestine clinics for treatment to deal with depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and addiction.—
Eduardo Cuevas,
USA Today,
29 June 2025
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Gi-hun, who’d found his way back in the clandestine gaming complex (situated inside a mountain on a remote island), is Player 456 again among a new round of contestants.—
Lorraine Ali,
Los Angeles Times,
28 June 2025
Adjective
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Fourth-generation aircraft include workhorse attack planes like the F-15 and F-18, while fifth-generation are stealthy, like the Air Force’s most sophisticated plane, the F-22.—
Cybele Mayes-Osterman,
USA Today,
23 June 2025
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Now, scientists writing in Frontiers in Earth Sciences have identified certain characteristics that explain the stealthy nature of Veniaminof and others like it.—
Rosie McCall,
Discover Magazine,
16 June 2025
Adjective
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On June 24, undercover agents attempted to purchase fireworks from Pan.—
Roni Jacobson,
New York Daily News,
30 June 2025
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Conan Edogawa and Detective Kogoro Mouri join the Nagano prefectural police to investigate a break-in at the observatory while uncovering a deeper plot involving undercover agents, betrayal, and vengeance.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
30 June 2025
Adjective
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Now, after Operation Midnight Hammer, arguably one of the most perfect covert military operations in U.S. history, who could argue? Even Trump’s most ardent critics had to give him credit.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
28 June 2025
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The show has spent its entire fourth season tiptoeing around Sydney’s covert job offer, Carmy’s partnership alterations, and whatever was going on inside Richie’s GoFastBoatsMojito brain, but in one big, 30-odd-minute bottle episode, it’s all been laid on the table.—
Marah Eakin,
Vulture,
26 June 2025
Adjective
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This ambitious project is powered by an army of 432 small robots that are moving the massive structure about 33 feet each day to make way for a new underground development.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
29 June 2025
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Prime Minister Winston Churchill and his cabinet directed the British war effort during World War II from this secret underground complex.—
Joseph V Micallef,
Forbes.com,
28 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Sneaky.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sneaky. Accessed 10 Jul. 2025.
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