Furtive Meaning: Furtive Glance, Examples and Quiz
Furtive (adjective). Furtive describes an action done cautiously or secretly to avoid attention. A furtive look or movement can suggest that someone wants to keep an action hidden.
Example: During the rehearsal, Mina took a furtive look at her notes before answering.
Pronunciation guide: FUR-tiv. Capital letters show the stressed syllable.
Explore the usage · Try the three-question quiz · Keep learning
What is a furtive glance?
A furtive glance is a quick look that the person tries to keep unnoticed. The emphasis is on avoiding attention, rather than simply looking for a short time.
Compare: “He glanced at the clock” reports a brief look. “He cast a furtive glance at the clock” suggests that he did not want someone to notice him checking it.
Furtive in sentences
- The children exchanged furtive smiles while planning a surprise.
- She made a furtive attempt to read the label on the wrapped gift.
- A furtive movement behind the curtain caught the actor’s attention.
These examples suggest concealment, but they do not all describe wrongdoing. Context tells you why the action is hidden.
Furtive and furtively
Furtive describes a noun: a furtive glance, a furtive look or furtive movements. Furtively describes an action: “He furtively checked his phone beneath the desk.”
Furtiveness is the noun for the quality of acting this way. Compare “Her glance was furtive” with “She glanced furtively.”
Furtive, secretive, shy and cursory
Secretive can describe someone who shares little information. Furtive focuses more closely on hiding an action or avoiding notice. Shy describes social unease; it is not evidence of concealment.
A cursory look is brief and not thorough. A furtive look is intended to escape notice. A look could be both, but the two adjectives highlight different features.
In a story, furtive behaviour can create suspicion. In real life, avoiding eye contact or moving nervously is not proof that someone is lying or doing something wrong.
Synonyms, opposites and origin
Stealthy and surreptitious are close alternatives in suitable contexts. Open or unconcealed may express the opposite.
The word is connected with Latin roots for theft. That history helps explain its associations, but modern uses can describe harmless secrets too.
Practise furtive: three quick questions
Try each question before opening its answer. For the writing question, your own correct sentence is welcome.
Question 1
Which detail makes a glance furtive: A) avoiding notice or B) reading every line carefully?
Show answer 1 and explanation
A. The person is trying not to be noticed.
Question 2
Complete: “She ___ checked the score.” Choose furtive or furtively.
Show answer 2 and explanation
Furtively. The sentence needs an adverb to describe checked.
Question 3
Describe someone secretly checking a birthday present, using “furtive.”
Show answer 3 and explanation
Example: “He took a furtive look inside the shopping bag while his sister was outside.” The hidden action makes the word fit.
Keep learning
Compare these words next: Cursory meaning and practice and Chivalrous meaning and practice.
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Dictionary reference: Merriam-Webster: Furtive. The examples and practice questions on this page are written for English Skill Studio.
FROM READING TO PRACTICE
Practise this topic
Build on this article with a connected lesson. Explore the explanation, try the examples, and check what you remember.
Mendacious
Compare secrecy with mendacious behaviour, which specifically involves dishonesty.
Idiom lessonLet the cat out of the bag
Practise an expression for revealing a secret.
Grammar lessonAdjectives – Types, Order, Comparisons
Practise where adjectives go when describing people, things or situations with “furtive”.
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