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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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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Recent Examples of sneaky
Its durability is in large part due to Wilde’s sneaky indictment of the repressive culture that forced Dorian to keep his true self hidden, locked away in a closet.
—
Samantha Allen, Them., 7 Oct. 2025
The character had a sneaky pathos.
—Rachel Syme, New Yorker, 29 Sep. 2025
Seattle isn’t flashy but is solid, sneaky good, with the second-best points differential in the NFL and Sam Darnold-to-Jaxon Smith-Njigba an unheralded-but-potent hookup.
—Miami Herald, 24 Sep. 2025
Get peace of mind during your travels with these sneaky luggage protection hacks.
—Merrell Readman, Travel + Leisure, 23 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sneaky
Samantha Allen, Them., 7 Oct. 2025
The character had a sneaky pathos.
—Rachel Syme, New Yorker, 29 Sep. 2025
Seattle isn’t flashy but is solid, sneaky good, with the second-best points differential in the NFL and Sam Darnold-to-Jaxon Smith-Njigba an unheralded-but-potent hookup.
—Miami Herald, 24 Sep. 2025
Get peace of mind during your travels with these sneaky luggage protection hacks.
—Merrell Readman, Travel + Leisure, 23 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sneaky
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sneaky
Adjective
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At the time, many bettors turned to social media to say that something shady occurred regarding prop bets involving his stats for that night.—
Preston Fore,
Fortune,
25 Oct. 2025
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Plants bloom well in shady locations and fill the late-summer gap with narrow, upright panicles packed with white or pink blooms.—
Kim Toscano,
Southern Living,
24 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Get Ready: Katy Perry Has Released a Sneak Peek of Her New Song And the internet has receipts.—
Mehera Bonner,
Marie Claire,
15 Mar. 2017
Adjective
-
When Kelce started dating pop star and his now-fiancée, Taylor Swift, in 2023, Nicole notably came under scrutiny for seemingly unfollowing one of Kelce’s teammates on Instagram and recently for making a sly response to a new Swift track that appears to reference her previous romance with Kelce.—
Luke Chinman,
PEOPLE,
14 Oct. 2025
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Gigi Zumbado is a sly scene-stealer as Ceci, the department’s relatively cool and confident and young photographer, but hasn’t been given much to do besides snark from the sidelines.—
Angie Han,
HollywoodReporter,
13 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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In exchange, the agent told the pilot in a clandestine meeting, the aviator would be made a very rich man.—
Joshua Goodman,
Fortune,
28 Oct. 2025
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If substantiated, Russia's use of a maritime disaster site for clandestine military purposes represents both a security threat and a sensitive violation of an international agreement aimed at honoring the victims.—
Jordan King,
MSNBC Newsweek,
24 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The Cape coral cobra (Aspidelaps lubricus) and the forest cobra (Naja melanoleuca), act in a more stealthy fashion.—
Laura Baisas,
Popular Science,
23 Oct. 2025
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Countries around the globe are planning to build faster, bigger, and more stealthy jets which can carry out operations undetected.—
Abhishek Bhardwaj,
Interesting Engineering,
14 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Billitier did have a hell of a story to tell about his decades of undercover work for the FBI, including several years infiltrating a Colombian drug ring in Texas.—
Steve Belanger,
HollywoodReporter,
23 Oct. 2025
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The movie is based on the 1980s TV series, starring Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas, as undercover detectives in South Florida.—
Angelique Jackson,
Variety,
23 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said on Friday the incident and the recent air incursion linked to Moscow show Kremlin plans for covert and overt attacks against Europe to prepare for a possible NATO-Russia war.—
Brendan Cole,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 Oct. 2025
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The device is intended for intelligent underwater detection, real-time environmental monitoring, and potentially covert reconnaissance missions worldwide.—
Bojan Stojkovski,
Interesting Engineering,
25 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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At the very end of the movie, Bigelow captures a variety of government officials funneling into Raven Rock Mountain Complex, otherwise known as Site R, a military installation with an underground nuclear bunker near Blue Ridge, Pa.—
Jake Kring-Schreifels,
Time,
27 Oct. 2025
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While tectonic activity is the leading cause, earthquakes can also result from volcanic eruptions, underground explosions, and human activities like mining or large-scale construction.—
Amanda Castro,
MSNBC Newsweek,
27 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Sneaky.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sneaky. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
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