on the sly
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The math-proficiency analysis suggests it may be doing so on the sly.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 30, 2025
We were forbidden to speak Urdu, but my mother still taught us on the sly.
From New York Times • Mar. 1, 2024
Show up to volunteer and Ignazio Vivirito, 83, who is always cooking something, might slip you a fresh-baked biscotti or a snack of bread and cheese on the sly.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 14, 2023
But with overfishing in the more populated areas - and the chance to earn big money selling fish on the sly - some fishermen encroach on indigenous land to find valuable species to sell.
From BBC • Jun. 13, 2022
Do my thoughts trade places like letters, on the sly?
From "Bronx Masquerade" by Nikki Grimes
