undercover

2 of 3

noun

as in spy
a person who tries secretly to obtain information for one country in the territory of another usually unfriendly country within the city was a well-organized fifth column, and these undercovers would make themselves known as soon as the invading forces breached the city limits

Synonyms & Similar Words

undercover

3 of 3

adverb

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 undercover
Noun
On Monday, Akhtar met in person with an undercover agent posing as an Islamic State group operative. Elaine Mallon, The Washington Examiner, 24 June 2025 The items will be under 24-hour surveillance by more than 25 armed security guards, 360-degree cameras, undercover and uniformed police and canine units for the duration of Fanatics Fest. Larry Holder, New York Times, 21 June 2025
Adverb
Blazer had been wearing a wire, working in tandem with an FBI undercover, ensnaring more than ten coaches in an elaborate plot that revealed corruption in the basketball programs at Louisville, Arizona, LSU, USC and other schools. Guy Lawson, Rolling Stone, 24 Mar. 2024 Back at the hospital Jack tells Brady that working undercover took a lot of courage. Jessica Radloff, Glamour, 8 Sep. 2023 See All Example Sentences for undercover
Recent Examples of Synonyms for undercover
Adjective
  • 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
  • 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
  • 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
  • This deliberately allusive narrative style enables the author to elude the topic of Nazism—or at least to hint at it in a covert way, thus making the novel acceptable to a wide German audience at the time of its publication in 1968.
    Ombline Damy, JSTOR Daily, 26 June 2025
Noun
  • The international community continues to watch closely as tensions simmer and Iran's spy crisis deepens.
    Amir Daftari, MSNBC Newsweek, 25 June 2025
  • Oh no, the uncles are mini-golfing in Biloxi and spy Mina with Demetrius.
    Emma Specter, Vogue, 25 June 2025
Adverb
  • Early evidence has shown the bombing did not reach depths necessary to destroy the facilities, which are buried deeply underground, according to a second U.S. official.
    Nicole Fallert, USA Today, 26 June 2025
  • The amount of groundwater replenishment during the 2024 water year, while significant, was less than the 8.7 million acre-feet that percolated underground during the extremely wet 2023 water year, according to state estimates.
    Ian James, Los Angeles Times, 24 June 2025
Adjective
  • Amazon’s secret outlet has more than 20,000 markdowns on summer clothing and accessories.
    Emily Weaver, People.com, 28 June 2025
  • Originally built by the British Navy, the cabin is said to have been the site of secret meetings held by Winston Churchill.
    Zoe Baillargeon, Travel + Leisure, 28 June 2025
Noun
  • According to a 1996 Los Angeles Times piece, an 18th Street operative pitched his plan for taking over Orange County in a back alley in Cudahy, with two dozen associates in tow.
    Mia Cathell, The Washington Examiner, 27 June 2025
  • The Mossad, Israel’s equivalent of the CIA, had personnel in Iran ready for the launch of Operation Rising Lion, something that was revealed in unprecedented fashion when the agency released video of its operatives at work.
    Rachel Wolf , Yonat Friling, FOXNews.com, 26 June 2025
Adjective
  • This was of national interest, not just private economic interest.
    Laura Poppick, Rolling Stone, 30 June 2025
  • The recent acquisition of 80% of its operating business by one of Europe’s oldest and most prestigious private equity firms, PAI Partners, values the brand at $3.6 billion.
    Katharina Kotrba, Forbes.com, 30 June 2025
Noun
  • In many cases, legacy systems can’t easily accommodate these autonomous agents without substantial reengineering.
    Sol Rashidi, Forbes.com, 28 June 2025
  • Six crew members and a gate agent at Charlotte Douglas International Airport were taken to the hospital Friday night after inhaling something, according to MEDIC.
    Jeff A. Chamer, Charlotte Observer, 28 June 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Undercover.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/undercover. Accessed 6 Jul. 2025.

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