sneaky en · ADJ
Pronunciation
- (US) audio
- /ˈsniːki/
Etymology
Etymology tree English sneak Proto-Indo-European *-kos Proto-Germanic *-gaz Proto-West Germanic *-g Old English -iġ Middle English -y English -y English sneaky From sneak + -y.
Meanings
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Elusive; difficult to capture or observe due to constantly outwitting the adversaries.
Catching those thieves will be hard: they're so sneaky!
Some fans may have mistaken the album’s floatiness for aimlessness, but Mr. Mercer’s songs have never been sneakier, or prettier.
2007 October 25, Kelefa Sanneh, “Songs With a Sneaky Streak”, in The New York Times:Be sneaky. Fish frighten easily.
1995 April 14, Jeff Csatari, “Tackle Tips”, in Boys' Life, volume 85, number 4, Irving, Texas: Boy Scouts of America, Inc., →ISSN, page 42:
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Dishonest; deceitful.
They played a sneaky trick on us.
Irish car bombs were a sneaky drink—they tasted like a chocolate milk shake, and more than once he'd been seduced into drinking several of them. It was only after he stood up that he realized how much of a wallop they packed.
2013, Lara Lacombe, Deadly Contact, page 12:A contribution to a wall newspaper of which I was an editor in our sector poked fun at the never-changing menu in the school cafeteria. It centred on the various and devious methods used in serving us hamburger. One time it would be called hamburger, another time bifshtek, then cutlet, and sneakiest of all, schnitzel—the only difference among them was usually only in their shape or whether bread crumbs had been used.
1988, Peter Hunter, “Back to School: Dealing with Dissent”, in Which Side Are You On, Boys: Canadian Life on the Left, Toronto, Ont.: Lugus Productions Ltd., →ISBN, page 96:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| sneakier | Degree=Cmp | lexicographic | |
| sneakiest | Degree=Sup | lexicographic |
Deriveds
sneaky beak · sneakily · sneaky link · sneaky-deaky · sneaky suspicion · sneaky beaky · sneaky Pete · sneakiness · sneaky fucker strategy
Relateds
Synonyms
Translations (51)
ru по́длый (dishonest; deceitful) · it spione (dishonest; deceitful) · bg подъл (dishonest; deceitful) · be хітры (difficult to catch due to constantly outwitting the adversaries) · jam jim-screechy (dishonest; deceitful) · eo insidema (dishonest; deceitful) · ru изворотливый (difficult to catch due to constantly outwitting the adversaries) · hu álnok (dishonest; deceitful) · lv zaglīgs (difficult to catch due to constantly outwitting the adversaries) · fr fourbe (dishonest; deceitful) · pt malandro (dishonest; deceitful) · nl geniepig (dishonest; deceitful) · fr insaisissable (difficult to catch due to constantly outwitting the adversaries) · tr sofistike (difficult to catch due to constantly outwitting the adversaries) · it disonesto (dishonest; deceitful) · de raffiniert (difficult to catch due to constantly outwitting the adversaries) · yi כיטרע (dishonest; deceitful) · wa sournwès (dishonest; deceitful) · fi petollinen (dishonest; deceitful) · es escurridizo (difficult to catch due to constantly outwitting the adversaries) · hu sunyi (dishonest; deceitful) · de duckmäuserig (dishonest; deceitful) · it furtivo (difficult to catch due to constantly outwitting the adversaries) · fi ovela (difficult to catch due to constantly outwitting the adversaries) · ru хитрый (difficult to catch due to constantly outwitting the adversaries) · hu alattomos (dishonest; deceitful) · enm sleighty (difficult to catch due to constantly outwitting the adversaries) · it sfuggevole (difficult to catch due to constantly outwitting the adversaries) · fi luihu (dishonest; deceitful) · bg таен (difficult to catch due to constantly outwitting the adversaries) · it sfuggente (difficult to catch due to constantly outwitting the adversaries) · la perfidus (dishonest; deceitful) · es marrullero (dishonest; deceitful) · fi epärehellinen (dishonest; deceitful) · it subdolo (dishonest; deceitful) · es taimado (dishonest; deceitful) · bg скрит (difficult to catch due to constantly outwitting the adversaries) · nl gluiperig (dishonest; deceitful) · it mancino (dishonest; deceitful) · mk лукав (difficult to catch due to constantly outwitting the adversaries) · de hinterhältig (dishonest; deceitful) · it malandrino (dishonest; deceitful) · pt malandro (difficult to catch due to constantly outwitting the adversaries) · tr sinsi (dishonest; deceitful) · pt esquivo (difficult to catch due to constantly outwitting the adversaries) · fr furtif (difficult to catch due to constantly outwitting the adversaries) · fr sournois (dishonest; deceitful) · yi ממזריש (dishonest; deceitful) · mk подмолен (dishonest; deceitful) · sh podmukao (dishonest; deceitful) · be баязлівы (dishonest; deceitful)