1
: to go stealthily or furtively : slink
snuck out early
2
: to act in or as if in a furtive manner
3
: to carry the football on a quarterback sneak
: to put, bring, or take in a furtive or artful manner
sneak a smoke
Sneaked vs. Snuck: Usage Guide
From its earliest appearance in print in the late 19th century as a dialectal and probably uneducated form, the past and past participle snuck has risen to the status of standard and to approximate equality with sneaked. It is most common in the U.S. and Canada but has also been spotted in British and Australian English.
1
: a person who acts in a stealthy, furtive, or shifty manner
2
a
: a stealthy or furtive move
b
: an unobserved departure or escape
3
: sneaker sense 2
—usually used in plural
1
: carried on secretly : clandestine
2
: occurring without warning : surprise
a sneak attack
Examples of sneak in a Sentence
Verb
They tried to sneak into the movie without paying.
She sneaked some cigars through customs.
He snuck a few cookies out of the jar while his mother wasn't looking.
They caught him trying to sneak food into the theater.
Can I sneak a peek at your quiz answers?
Noun
What a rotten sneak! I should have known not to trust her.
He ran a sneak up the middle for a touchdown.
Adjective
a sneak attack on the nation's capitol
Recent Examples on the Web
David Axe, Forbes.com, 28 Mar. 2025
Investigators learned the girl had snuck out of her house at about 1:30 a.m. to meet up with someone, and that person likely killed her and left her body until it was found about eight hours later, Nienhuis said.
—Olivia Lloyd, Miami Herald, 28 Mar. 2025
Ron Estes, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Mar. 2025
Underwood gave a sneak peak into her judging style during an episode of SiriusXM’s Music Row Happy Hour in August 2024.
—Monica Mercuri, Forbes, 9 Mar. 2025
Mehera Bonner, Marie Claire, 15 Mar. 2017
See All Example Sentences for sneak
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Verb
That Ukraine’s fiber-optic FPVs are now sneaking up on Russians in their sleeping bags is a good indication that the drones are becoming extremely capable.
—David Axe, Forbes.com, 28 Mar. 2025
Investigators learned the girl had snuck out of her house at about 1:30 a.m. to meet up with someone, and that person likely killed her and left her body until it was found about eight hours later, Nienhuis said.
—Olivia Lloyd, Miami Herald, 28 Mar. 2025
Noun
Fans got a sneak peak at this likely first-round matchup on Friday night, when the Knicks, sans Brunson, bested the Bucks, sans Lillard, 116-107.
—Ron Estes, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Mar. 2025
Underwood gave a sneak peak into her judging style during an episode of SiriusXM’s Music Row Happy Hour in August 2024.
—Monica Mercuri, Forbes, 9 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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
See All Example Sentences for sneak
Video
Sneaked vs. Snuck
How the irregular 'snuck' sneaked into the dictionary
Cite this Entry
“Sneak.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sneak. Accessed 3 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
sneak
2 of 3 noun1
: a person who acts in a secret or sly manner
2
: the act or an instance of sneaking
sneak
3 of 3 adjective1
: carried on secretly : clandestine
2
: occurring without warning
a sneak attack
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