underground en · ADJ · etymology 1
Pronunciation
- /ˌʌn.dəɹˈɡɹaʊnd/ (General-American)
- /ˌʌn.dəˈɡɹaʊnd/ (Received-Pronunciation)
- /ˌʊn.dɐˈɡɹʊnd/ (Northumbria)
Etymology
From Middle English undergrounde (adverb), equivalent to under + ground or under- + ground. Compare Dutch ondergrond, ondergronds, German Untergrund, Danish undergrunds.
Meanings
-
(not-comparable) Below the ground; below the surface of the Earth.
There is an underground tunnel that takes you across the river.
One of the hidden glories of Victorian engineering is proper drains. Isolating a city’s effluent and shipping it away in underground sewers has probably saved more lives than any medical procedure except vaccination.
2014 June 14, “It’s a gas”, in The Economist, volume 411, number 8891, London: The Economist Group, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 12 Jun 2014:
-
(figuratively) Hidden, furtive, secretive.
These criminals operate through an underground network.
At the time, South Florida had a highly active underground biker culture. Gangs including the Pagans, Outlaws and the Reapers frequently moved through the area.
2026 July 29, Nicholas Muhoro, “Amy Billig Vanished While Hitchhiking Through Coconut Grove. Then the Calls Began”, in Skip Boring, archived from the original on 31 Jul 2026:
-
(figuratively) Of or relating to an art forms (such as music) or subculture that is outside the mainstream, especially one that is unofficial and hidden from the authorities.
‘[…]he wrote to me last week telling me about an incredible bitch of a row blazing there on account of someone having been and gone and produced an unofficial magazine called Raddled, full of obscene libellous Oz-like filth. And what I though, what Sammy and I thought, was—why not?’ ‘Why not what?’ said Tom. ‘Why not do the same thing here?’ ‘You mean an underground magazine?’ ‘Yup.’
1991, Stephen Fry, The Liar, page 27:underground music
"In many ways, it showed there was no longer an underground, as such. This proved that there was no longer one society with everyone agreeing how to live . . . The underground had officially come above ground, and consequently no longer existed."
2010 March 20, James Campbell, “Barry Miles: 'I think of the 60s as a supermarket of ideas. We were looking for new ways to live'”, in The Guardian:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| under-ground | alternative, archaic | lexicographic | |
| most underground | Degree=Sup | lexicographic | |
| more underground | Degree=Cmp | lexicographic | |
| under ground | alternative, archaic | lexicographic |
Antonyms
Deriveds
underground mutton · Weather Underground · nonunderground · go underground · deep underground military base · Underground Railroad · underground people · underground railway · underground handball · underground handpass · underground folk · semiunderground
Synonyms
hush-hush · under wraps · backroom · obfuscated · private · occulted · secret · underground · undisclosed · deep-laid · sly · silent · furtive · lurky · surreptitious · low profile · stealthy · incognito · snug · clandestine · lurksome · off-the-books · stealth · obscure · slinky · nondisplayed · confidential · inconspicuous · abstruse · invisible · obfuscated · covert · secreted · secretive · unapparent · inward · recondite · obfuscatory · latent · underground · on the down-low · concealed · huggermugger · occluded · unconventional · sneaky · secret · backstairs · behind the scenes · dern · hypogean · secluded · under-the-table · tect · veiled · obscured · concealed · cloak-and-dagger · subterranean · covered · undercover · belowground · unperceived · dark · hidden · under the radar · alternative · mousy · dern · disguised · sub rosa · on the sly · catlike
Translations (120)
uk підзе́мний (below the ground — see also subterranean) · bg ъндърграунд (outside the mainstream) · es subterráneo (below the ground — see also subterranean) · ja 秘密の (hidden, furtive) · la subterrāneus (below the ground — see also subterranean) · io subtera (below the ground — see also subterranean) · fi maanalainen (below the ground — see also subterranean) · pl podziemny (below the ground — see also subterranean) · pt underground (outside the mainstream) · hi भूगर्भिक (below the ground — see also subterranean) · de unterirdisch (below the ground — see also subterranean) · el υπόγειος (outside the mainstream) · fr alternatif (outside the mainstream) · is neðanjarðar (below the ground — see also subterranean) · grc ὑπόνομος (below the ground — see also subterranean) · de Untegrund- (outside the mainstream) · fi maanalainen (hidden, furtive) · hu titkos (hidden, furtive) · yi אונטערערדיש (below the ground — see also subterranean) · ka ფარული (hidden, furtive) · de Untegrund- (below the ground — see also subterranean) · pt subterrâneo (below the ground — see also subterranean) · sv underjordisk (below the ground — see also subterranean) · ro subteran (below the ground — see also subterranean) · fr clandestin (hidden, furtive) · hu földalatti (hidden, furtive) · ca subterrani (below the ground — see also subterranean) · hu rejtett (hidden, furtive) · it clandestino (hidden, furtive) · ca secret (hidden, furtive) · sh по̏та̄јан (hidden, furtive) · hu föld alatti (below the ground — see also subterranean) · ka იატაკქვეშა (hidden, furtive) · es soterrano (below the ground — see also subterranean) · hu alternatív (outside the mainstream) · be падзе́мны (below the ground — see also subterranean) · tr underground (outside the mainstream) · ja 地下 (below the ground — see also subterranean) · sh pȍtājan (hidden, furtive) · cmn 暗中的 (hidden, furtive) · cs podzemní (below the ground — see also subterranean) · hu illegális (hidden, furtive) · ko 땅밑 (below the ground — see also subterranean) · bg подмо́лен (hidden, furtive) · ru подпо́льный (hidden, furtive) · mi rarowhenua (below the ground — see also subterranean) · ru андергра́унд (outside the mainstream) · grc χθόνιος (below the ground — see also subterranean) · el υπόγειος (below the ground — see also subterranean) · el λαθραίος (hidden, furtive) · tg зеризаминӣ (below the ground — see also subterranean) · sh podzeman (below the ground — see also subterranean) · unm hakink (below the ground — see also subterranean) · mk подземен (below the ground — see also subterranean) · ko 땅아래 (below the ground — see also subterranean) · bg подзе́мен (below the ground — see also subterranean) · it sotterraneo (below the ground — see also subterranean) · yi אונטערגרונט (below the ground — see also subterranean) · mk потаен (hidden, furtive) · ca clandestí (hidden, furtive) · ja アングラ (outside the mainstream) · sh прикрѝвен (hidden, furtive) · cy tanddaearol (below the ground — see also subterranean) · sh подземан (outside the mainstream) · nb underjordisk (below the ground — see also subterranean) · eo subtera (below the ground — see also subterranean) · sk podzemný (below the ground — see also subterranean) · cmn 非主流 (outside the mainstream) · cmn 地下的 (hidden, furtive) · el υπόγειος (hidden, furtive) · ru подзе́мный (below the ground — see also subterranean) · cmn 地下 (below the ground — see also subterranean) · uk андергра́ундовий (outside the mainstream) · de heimlich (hidden, furtive) · ko 지하 (below the ground — see also subterranean) · ja アングラ (hidden, furtive) · es soterraño (below the ground — see also subterranean) · sh подземан (below the ground — see also subterranean) · hi अंतर्भौम (below the ground — see also subterranean) · hi ज़मींदोज़ (below the ground — see also subterranean) · grc ὑπόγειος (below the ground — see also subterranean) · el περιθωριακός (outside the mainstream) · nl underground (outside the mainstream) · cmn 秘密的 (hidden, furtive) · tr yer altı (outside the mainstream) · yi אונטערערדיש (hidden, furtive) · he מַחְתַּרְתִּי (hidden, furtive) · fi underground (outside the mainstream) · sl podzemen (below the ground — see also subterranean) · fr souterrain (below the ground — see also subterranean) · pl undergroundowy (outside the mainstream) · sh podzeman (outside the mainstream) · fr underground (outside the mainstream) · uk андегра́ундовий (outside the mainstream) · pt clandestino (hidden, furtive) · hi भूमिगत (below the ground — see also subterranean) · hy ընդերկրյա (below the ground — see also subterranean) · ru андегра́унд (outside the mainstream) · pt secreto (hidden, furtive) · ka საიდუმლო (hidden, furtive) · de geheim (hidden, furtive) · ko 땅굴 (below the ground — see also subterranean) · bg та́ен (hidden, furtive) · sh prikrìven (hidden, furtive) · fr souterrain (hidden, furtive) · ms banah (below the ground — see also subterranean) · hi भूगर्भस्थ (below the ground — see also subterranean) · nl ondergronds (hidden, furtive) · de Untergrund- (hidden, furtive) · pl podziemny (hidden, furtive) · izh maanalain (below the ground — see also subterranean) · el μυστικός (hidden, furtive) · es soterráneo (disused) (below the ground — see also subterranean) · ja 不法の (hidden, furtive) · nl ondergronds (below the ground — see also subterranean) · pt alternativo (outside the mainstream) · ka მიწისქვეშა (below the ground — see also subterranean) · ms bawah tanah (below the ground — see also subterranean) · hy ստորգետնյա (below the ground — see also subterranean) · ko 땅속 (below the ground — see also subterranean)