on the sly
Secretly; in a clandestine or furtive manner. Even though he said he'd quit smoking, he still kept up the habit on the sly. The senator had been taking bribes from lobbyists on the sly for years before he was caught.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
on the sly
Fig. secretly and deceptively. She was stealing little bits of money on the sly. Martin was having an affair with the maid on the sly.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
on the sly
Furtively, secretly, as in She's always eating cookies on the sly. The adjective sly, which means "cunning" or "crafty," is here used as a noun. [c. 1800]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
do something on the ˈsly
do something secretly: She didn’t seem to have much appetite for dinner. I wonder if she’s been eating chocolates on the sly? OPPOSITE: (out) in(to) the openFarlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017
on the sly
mod. secretly and deceptively. She was stealing little bits of money on the sly.
McGraw-Hill's Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
on the sly
In a way intended to escape notice: took extra payments on the sly.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
on the sly
Secretly, furtively. This early-nineteenth-century term appeared in a letter of John Keats’s (1818): “It might have been a good joke to pour on the sly bottle after bottle into a washing tub.” It remains current.
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer Copyright © 2013 by Christine Ammer