Furtive — Fur tive, a. [L. furtivus, fr. furtum theft, fr. fur thief, akin to ferre to bear: cf. F. furtif. See {Fertile}.] Stolen; obtained or characterized by stealth; sly; secret; stealthy; as, a furtive look. Prior. [1913 Webster] A hasty and furtive… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
furtive — late 15c. (implied in furtively), from Fr. furtif, from L. furtivus stolen, hidden, secret, from furtum theft, robbery, from fur (gen. furis) thief, probably from PIE *bhor , from root *bher (1) to carry. Related: Furtiveness … Etymology dictionary
furtive — stealthy, clandestine, surreptitious, underhand, underhanded, *secret, covert Analogous words: *sly, cunning, crafty, wily, guileful, artful: *cautious, calculating, wary, circumspect: disguised, cloaked, masked (see DISGUISE vb) Antonyms:… … New Dictionary of Synonyms
furtive — [adj] sneaky, secretive artful, calculating, cautious, circumspect, clandestine, cloaked, conspiratorial, covert, crafty*, creepy*, cunning, disguised, elusive, evasive, foxy, guileful, hidden, hush hush*, insidious, masked, scheming, shifty*,… … New thesaurus
furtive — ► ADJECTIVE ▪ characterized by guilty or evasive secrecy; stealthy. DERIVATIVES furtively adverb furtiveness noun. ORIGIN Latin furtivus, from furtum theft … English terms dictionary
furtive — [fʉr′tiv] adj. [Fr furtif < L furtivus, stolen, hidden < furtum, theft < fur, a thief < IE * bhōr (> Gr phōr) < base * bher , to BEAR1: hence, orig., one who carries off] done or acting in a stealthy manner, as if to hinder… … English World dictionary
furtive — ● furtif, furtive adjectif (latin furtivus, dérobé, de fur, furis, voleur) Qui se fait rapidement, à la dérobée, de manière à échapper à l attention : Une larme furtive. Littéraire. Qui passe rapidement, presque inaperçu : Des apparitions… … Encyclopédie Universelle
furtive — fur|tive [ˈfə:tıv US ˈfə:r ] adj [Date: 1600 1700; : French; Origin: furtif, from Latin fur thief ] behaving as if you want to keep something secret = ↑secretive ▪ There was something furtive about his actions. furtive glances/looks ▪ Chris kept… … Dictionary of contemporary English
furtive — adjective behaving as if you want to keep something secret: There was something furtive about his appearance. | furtive glances/looks: Christine kept stealing furtive glances at me. furtively adverb furtiveness noun (U) … Longman dictionary of contemporary English
furtive — furtively, adv. furtiveness, n. /ferr tiv/, adj. 1. taken, done, used, etc., surreptitiously or by stealth; secret: a furtive glance. 2. sly; shifty: a furtive manner. [1480 90; < L furtivus, equiv. to furt(um) theft (cf. fur thief) + ivus IVE] … Universalium
