FURTIVELY Synonyms: 27 Similar and Opposite Words

furtively

adverb

Definition of furtively

as in surreptitiously

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Recent Examples of furtively There are cities where rats are glimpsed at night, furtively scurrying into a dark corner or among the train tracks. — David A. Graham, The Atlantic, 18 Sep. 2026 Jordan may wish to exact revenge, and Eddy may want to find one of the victims who has vanished, but both have to go about their work furtively. — Los Angeles Times, 1 Sep. 2026 Kikuko, her appetite sluggish, nibbled the bread bit by bit from the edges, all the while furtively watching her father. — Cynthia Zarin, Harpers Magazine, 4 Aug. 2026 It’s meant to blends furtively into a bookshelf or sits elegantly atop a bedside table, never inside it. — Tiana Randall, Forbes.com, 22 July 2026 At the combine, as executives and scouts furrowed their brows and furtively took notes, Mann and I stood on the concourse, watching team personnel watch prospects work out. — Brady Brickner-Wood, New Yorker, 4 June 2026 Unlike Monday's burial for Princess Irene, which follows a Saturday prayer service in Madrid and a funeral Monday at Metropolitan Cathedral of Athens, the Tatoi interment for Sofia's mother, Queen Federica of Greece, was not official, and took place almost furtively. — Diego Parrado, Vanity Fair, 18 Jan. 2026 This has become the central theme of The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City—probably the most chaotic show in its franchise—whose characters are always trying to root out which of their frenemies is furtively digging up dirt and spreading rumors about their legal or financial woes. — Judy Berman, Time, 5 Nov. 2025 Changing congressional maps in a bid to ensure one party’s victory over another — called gerrymandering — has typically been done more furtively. — Jesse Bedayn, Chicago Tribune, 15 Aug. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for furtively

Adverb

For years, scammers would surreptitiously install skimming devices on card readers at ATMs, gas pumps and corner stores.

— Eli Hager, ProPublica, 13 Oct. 2026
Among the most intriguing possibilities, Brouhard said, is that Gulf nations exporting oil are surreptitiously paying Iran fees in exchange for safe transit through the Strait of Hormuz – even as they’re secured by US military escorts.

— David Goldman, CNN Money, 6 Oct. 2026

Definition of surreptitiously

Adverb

There had been small tweaks season to season as the series traveled to different locations — all of them telegraphed in the start-of-production slate photos that stealthily revealed the new logo (including the Season 4 one).

— Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 13 Oct. 2026
The spread of the video was aided by clippers, accounts that post hundreds of clips in a single day and are paid by companies to stealthily link these viral moments to their platforms.

— CT Jones, Rolling Stone, 11 Sep. 2026

Definition of stealthily

Adverb

And the regime has trustees in many surrounding nations who secretively conduct transactions for the regime in the form of US dollars, cryptocurrency or other means to avoid detection, according to Brown.

— David Goldman, CNN Money, 6 Oct. 2026
The state, in partnership with the federal government, built the camp quickly and secretively and opened it in July.

— Eve Samples, The Orlando Sentinel, 12 June 2026

Definition of secretively

Adverb

But the two still co-parented well, and developed a teasing relationship, with McQueen sneakily making sure to marry his last wife, model Barbara Minty, before Adams married her second husband Alvin Toffel in 1980.

— Hadley Hall Meares, Vanity Fair, 20 Oct. 2026
It may be branded a Gen Z series, but FX’s Adults is sneakily quite a throwback.

— Mikey O'Connell, HollywoodReporter, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of sneakily

Adverb

Either form can be easily and covertly placed into an unsuspecting person’s beverage or food.

— Christopher P. Holstege, The Conversation, 15 Oct. 2026
While renting a charming Mediterranean Revival-style villa in the Hollywood Hills, the FBI tapped her phone lines and the CIA covertly intercepted and opened her mail.

— Wendy Bowman, Robb Report, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of covertly

Adverb

Because Iran is a theocratic dictatorship that routinely arrests and in some cases executes journalists, Western reporters hoping to cover the country must either work clandestinely or submit to government supervision.

— James Kirchick, The Atlantic, 29 July 2026
Soon afterward, social media commenters were speculating about whether Sierra broke into the office or was caught clandestinely shredding documents.

— Don Stacom, Hartford Courant, 10 July 2026

Definition of clandestinely

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“Furtively.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/furtively. Accessed 21 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of furtively

adverb

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