v.
(past and past part. sneaked or informal, chiefly N. Amer. snuck)
- move, go, or convey in a furtive or stealthy manner.
▸stealthily do or obtain:
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she sneaked a glance at her watch.
- Brit. informal inform someone in authority of a person's misdeeds.
n.
informal - Brit. a telltale.
- a furtive person.
- N. Amer. short for sneaker.
adj.
acting or done surreptitiously:
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a sneak preview.
Usage
The standard past form of sneak is sneaked. An alternative past form, snuck, arose in US dialect in the 19th century. Although snuck was formerly regarded as non-standard its use has spread in the US, where it is now regarded as a standard alternative to sneaked in all but the most formal contexts.
Etymology
C16: prob. dial.; perh. rel. to obs. snike ‘to creep’.
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