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sneak

Etymology and origin of the English word sneak

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Confidence
Uncertain
Formation
Inherited
First attested
1596
Ultimate origin
Old English (snīcan)

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /sniːk/[1]

Etymology

It is obscurely related to early Middle English sniken, to creep, crawl (about 1200),[2][3][4] from Old English snīcan (before 899),[2][4][3] from *sneikanan,[2][4] cognate with Old Norse sníkja, to desire, hanker, and Danish snige, to sneak,[2][5] and related to snail and snake.[4][5] The NODE suggests the 16th-century word was probably dialectal.[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

To move in a stealthy, slinking way: 1596, in Shakespeare's 1 Henry IV;[2] 1594 in Merriam-Webster.[5] The stem appears earlier in sneakishly (1560).[2][4]

Semantic evolution

The noun, a sneaking or contemptible person, is from before 1643,[2][7] and the act of sneaking by 1700.[4][7] To insert or bring stealthily is by the 1640s,[4] to take something on the sly from 1883,[4] and sneak up on by 1869.[4] A sneak thief is recorded by 1859.[4] In British school slang, to sneak is to tell tales.[8] Sneaky is from 1833,[2] and soft-soled shoes were sneaks from 1862, the source of sneaker.[7]

Timeline

  • 1560 – sneakishly.[2]
  • 1596 – to sneak.[2]
  • before 1643 – a sneak (noun).[2][7]
  • 1833 – sneaky.[2]
  • 1859 – sneak thief.[4]
  • 1862 – a soft shoe (slang).[7]

Modern meaning

Verb

  1. To move quietly and stealthily.
  2. To bring, take or put somewhere secretly: to sneak a look.
  3. (UK, informal) To tell tales, especially at school.

Noun

  1. A stealthy, cowardly or underhand person.

Adjective

  1. Done secretly or without warning: a sneak attack.

Word family

  • sneaker
  • sneaky
  • sneak preview
  • sneak thief

References

  1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ a b c d e Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  8. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
Cite this entry

“Sneak.” Etymologically, 17 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/sneak. Accessed 17 Oct. 2026.

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