偷偷

tōu tōu

HSK 3.0 Level 6 Adverb Common

Definitions

1. stealthily
2. secretly
3. covertly
4. furtively
5. on the sly

Word relationships

Antonyms

1 item

• 公开 gōng kāi 公开 gōng kāi open; overt; public 公开 means 'openly' or 'publicly', the opposite of secretly doing something.: open; overt; public

Related words

1 item

• 偷偷摸摸 tōu tōu mō mō 偷偷摸摸 tōu tōu mō mō surreptitious; sneaky Reduplicated idiom meaning 'furtively' or 'sneaky', intensifying the sense of stealth.: surreptitious; sneaky

Synonyms

2 items

• 悄悄 qiāo qiāo 悄悄 qiāo qiāo quiet; making little or no noise Both can mean 'quietly' or 'secretly', but 偷偷 emphasizes sneaking and often implies doing something against rules or without permission.: quiet; making little or no noise
• 暗中 àn zhōng 暗中 àn zhōng in the dark 暗中 means 'in secret' or 'behind the scenes', more formal, while 偷偷 is more colloquial and implies stealthy behavior.: in the dark

Usage notes

Common mistakes

When used as an adverbial, 偷偷 cannot modify verbs that describe positive, open, or straightforward actions. It often collocates with actions considered improper or needing secrecy.

Example Sentences

2 shown

他 偷偷 看了看手机。

He secretly glanced at his phone.

學生們 偷偷 笑。

Source: Tatoeba.org (ID 13138944)

Sentence data courtesy of Tatoeba.org. AI-generated examples are marked with this icon.

Words Containing 偷偷

• 偷偷摸摸 偷偷摸摸 tōu tōu mō mō: surreptitious; sneaky

Child Words of 偷偷

• 偷 偷 tōu: to steal