1
as in shady
given to acting in secret and to concealing one's intentions
a furtive guy who always seems to be up to something, and usually that something is no-good
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in clandestine
undertaken or done so as to escape being observed or known by others
gave each other furtive glances as we watched our friend open the booby-trapped soda
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of furtive
The clip, which shows the dog giving its owner furtive side-eye while cautiously walking by captured the breed's endearing blend of innocence and mischief.
—
Maria Morava, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 June 2025
The secret-weapon character who makes the more haunting impression is Agnes, whose chignon hides a rebellious spirit underneath — as well as a furtive romance with the stable boy, Isak (Malte Gårdinger).
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 24 Jan. 2025
His squirrelly, strained voice was well attuned to the furtive ambivalence of his stage presence.
—Rolling Stone, 16 June 2025
The visual language is nimble, sometimes furtive and obscuring, and then classical and dramatic, recalling the photography of Robert Frank or Roy DeCarava.
—Doreen St. Félix, New Yorker, 14 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for furtive
Maria Morava, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 June 2025
The secret-weapon character who makes the more haunting impression is Agnes, whose chignon hides a rebellious spirit underneath — as well as a furtive romance with the stable boy, Isak (Malte Gårdinger).
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 24 Jan. 2025
His squirrelly, strained voice was well attuned to the furtive ambivalence of his stage presence.
—Rolling Stone, 16 June 2025
The visual language is nimble, sometimes furtive and obscuring, and then classical and dramatic, recalling the photography of Robert Frank or Roy DeCarava.
—Doreen St. Félix, New Yorker, 14 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for furtive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for furtive
Adjective
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In the South, cool-season grasses are often grown in shady areas of the landscape or seeded over Bermuda grass for winter color.—
Kim Toscano,
Southern Living,
17 Aug. 2025
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These shady characters are only part of a long list of ne’er-do-wells.—
Norman B. Gildin,
Sun Sentinel,
14 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Party leaders could reveal what their rivals were cooking up and reporters could penetrate clandestine deal-making through sources.—
Dan Walters,
Mercury News,
15 Aug. 2025
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Nic Carter, a crypto venture capitalist, then coined the term Operation Choke Point 2.0, referring to an Obama administration clandestine operation to debank undesirable industries including firearms dealers and payday lenders in the early 2010s.—
Billy Bambrough,
Forbes.com,
6 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Its power rests in Benicio del Toro as the shady international businessman Anatole Korda, a sly, seductive operator who is trying to firm up his many enterprises and bequeath them to his daughter, Liesl, played marvelously by Mia Threapleton.—
Taylor Antrim,
Vogue,
21 July 2025
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But the screenplay by Yoni Brenner and Etan Cohen is generally much smarter than that, featuring a plethora of sly one-liners revolving more around characterizations than pop-culture references.—
Frank Scheck,
HollywoodReporter,
24 July 2025
Adjective
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Here's are the signs to watch (and listen and smell) for that indicate the presence of these stealthy creatures in your home.—
Kathy Barnes,
Better Homes & Gardens,
9 Aug. 2025
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The brute-force safecracking methods Zhou points to, like cutting and drilling are far slower and less stealthy—or, like the Little Black Box, are available only to locksmiths and haven’t been publicly shown to be exploitable by unauthorized hackers.—
Andy Greenberg,
Wired News,
8 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Initially, Moscow opted to provide covert assistance to the rebels in the form of advice and financial support, but its involvement grew steadily more militarized.—
Foreign Affairs,
Foreign Affairs,
19 Aug. 2025
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The suit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, claims Otter's covert recording violates state and federal privacy and wiretap laws.—
Bobby Allyn,
NPR,
15 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Micky van de Ven’s goal, the opener on 39 minutes, came from a sneaky tactic which saw his new captain, and fellow centre-back, Cristian Romero peel towards the edge of the box and head the ball back into a dangerous area from Vicario’s free kick.—
Jay Harris,
New York Times,
14 Aug. 2025
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As his August 10 home run illustrated, Collins has some sneaky pop in his bat.—
Bernie Pleskoff,
Forbes.com,
13 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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He is aided by Yasir Abbas, a weapons specialist; Raghuveer Singh, a sniper who served in Kashmir and Tawang; Uday Bhan, an explosives expert; and Sukhbir Singh, an Indian agent undercover in Pakistan posing as a Karachi stockbroker.—
Time,
Time,
13 Aug. 2025
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Wednesday’s hearing before Magistrate Judge Shannon G. Elkins in downtown Minneapolis focused on several motions from Eichorn, including one to drop the charges and for the defense to be able to call the undercover officer who posed as a 17-year-old girl to testify.—
Mary Murphy,
Twin Cities,
6 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Renfrow, when on the field, has been hard to cover, as he is both shifty and quick in his routes.—
Mike Kaye
August 4,
Charlotte Observer,
4 Aug. 2025
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Jean-Bart burst on the scene in the Trojans’ spring game, showing off some spectacular catches in coverage as well as some shifty route-running ability.—
Chris Hays,
The Orlando Sentinel,
11 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Furtive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/furtive. Accessed 22 Aug. 2025.
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