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fur·tive

(fûrtĭv)

adj.

Characterized by, acting with, or suggesting stealth or a desire to avoid discovery; surreptitious: "J.W. from time to time gave her a furtive squeeze of the hand, but they never got to go out alone any more" (John Dos Passos). See Synonyms at secret.

[French furtif, from Old French, from Latin fūrtīvus, from fūrtum, theft, from fūr, thief; see bher-¹ in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.]

furtive·ly adv.

furtive·ness n.

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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