furtive

/ˈfər-tiv/

French or Latin; French furtif, from Latin furtivus, from furtum theft, from fur thief, from or akin to Greek phōr thief; akin to Greek pherein to carry

adjective

  1. done in a quiet and secretive way to avoid being noticed : surreptitious

  2. expressive of stealth : sly

  3. obtained underhandedly : stolen

a furtive glance

had a furtive look about him

secret covert stealthy furtive clandestine surreptitious underhanded mean done without attracting observation. secret implies concealment on any grounds for any motive. covert stresses the fact of not being open or declared.