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Long before 'American Idol', people used to call me a diva. And I be like, 'Hold on, are you calling me something else on the sly? You gonna call me a diva, call me a good diva.'
Jennifer Hudson

Meaning of "on the sly" in the English dictionary

Dictionary
DICTIONARY
section

PRONUNCIATION OF ON THE SLY

on the sly play
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WORDS THAT BEGIN LIKE ON THE SLY

on the safe side
on the same page
on the scrapheap
on the shelf
on the side
on the skids
on the skite
on the slate
on the spin
on the spot
on the spur of the moment
on the square
on the starboard bow
on the stocks
on the streets
on the strength of
on the stroke of
on the stump
on the sunny side of
on the surface

WORDS THAT END LIKE ON THE SLY

anonymously
consciously
continuously
dangerously
deviously
effortlessly
expressly
generously
grossly
hopelessly
obviously
previously
ridiculously
seamlessly
seriously
simultaneously
sly
spontaneously
tremendously
unanimously

Synonyms and antonyms of on the sly in the English dictionary of synonyms

SYNONYMS

SYNONYMS OF «ON THE SLY»

The following words have a similar or identical meaning as «on the sly» and belong to the same grammatical category.
synonyms of on the sly

Translation of «on the sly» into 25 languages

TRANSLATOR
online translator

TRANSLATION OF ON THE SLY

Find out the translation of on the sly to 25 languages with our English multilingual translator.
The translations of on the sly from English to other languages presented in this section have been obtained through automatic statistical translation; where the essential translation unit is the word «on the sly» in English.

Translator English - Chinese

偷偷地
1,325 millions of speakers

Translator English - Spanish

a escondidas
570 millions of speakers

English

on the sly
510 millions of speakers

Translator English - Hindi

छिपकर
380 millions of speakers
ar

Translator English - Arabic

على خبيث
280 millions of speakers

Translator English - Russian

потихоньку
278 millions of speakers

Translator English - Portuguese

às escondidas
270 millions of speakers

Translator English - Bengali

গোপনে
260 millions of speakers

Translator English - French

en douce
220 millions of speakers

Translator English - Malay

Pada diam
190 millions of speakers

Translator English - German

auf dem schlauen
180 millions of speakers

Translator English - Japanese

ひそかに
130 millions of speakers

Translator English - Korean

교활한 에
85 millions of speakers

Translator English - Javanese

Ing sly
85 millions of speakers
vi

Translator English - Vietnamese

một cách kín đáo
80 millions of speakers

Translator English - Tamil

ரகசியமாக
75 millions of speakers

Translator English - Marathi

धूर्त वर
75 millions of speakers

Translator English - Turkish

sinsice
70 millions of speakers

Translator English - Italian

di nascosto
65 millions of speakers

Translator English - Polish

po kryjomu
50 millions of speakers

Translator English - Ukrainian

потихеньку
40 millions of speakers

Translator English - Romanian

pe ascuns
30 millions of speakers
el

Translator English - Greek

στα κρυφά
15 millions of speakers
af

Translator English - Afrikaans

op die skelm
14 millions of speakers
sv

Translator English - Swedish

i smyg
10 millions of speakers
no

Translator English - Norwegian

på lur
5 millions of speakers

Trends of use of on the sly

TRENDS

TENDENCIES OF USE OF THE TERM «ON THE SLY»

The term «on the sly» is regularly used and occupies the 66.606 position in our list of most widely used terms in the English dictionary.
0
100%
FREQUENCY
Regularly used
69
/100
The map shown above gives the frequency of use of the term «on the sly» in the different countries.
Principal search tendencies and common uses of on the sly
List of principal searches undertaken by users to access our English online dictionary and most widely used expressions with the word «on the sly».

FREQUENCY OF USE OF THE TERM «ON THE SLY» OVER TIME

The graph expresses the annual evolution of the frequency of use of the word «on the sly» during the past 500 years. Its implementation is based on analysing how often the term «on the sly» appears in digitalised printed sources in English between the year 1500 and the present day.

Examples of use in the English literature, quotes and news about on the sly

EXAMPLES

3 QUOTES WITH «ON THE SLY»

Famous quotes and sentences with the word on the sly.
1
Asghar Farhadi
Unless you're trying to make a movie on the sly, there's no way to get around this. If you want to use public spaces, film on the streets, have the cooperation of the police, you have to have a permit.
2
Jennifer Hudson
Long before 'American Idol', people used to call me a diva. And I be like, 'Hold on, are you calling me something else on the sly? You gonna call me a diva, call me a good diva.'
3
Karan Johar
I remember breaking the news to both my parents that I wanted to be a director, and they both looked very doubtful. They didn't know what a closet Hindi film buff I was. I used to dance to old Hindi films songs on the sly, so my decision to be a part of Hindi cinema was shocking even for my parents.

10 ENGLISH BOOKS RELATING TO «ON THE SLY»

Discover the use of on the sly in the following bibliographical selection. Books relating to on the sly and brief extracts from same to provide context of its use in English literature.
1
Beadle's Dime Song Book, etc
His manly whiskers swept her cheek, She uttered no reply; How could she part her lips to speak, While kissing on the sly? There's such a sum of smacking bliss That Croesus could not buy, The honeyed worth of one sweet kiss, That's taken on ...
Erastus F. BEADLE, 1863
2
The Word Circus: A Letter-perfect Book
What was once filled is now ill-fed; what was come by honestly is now ON THE SLY, and what was worthy of commendation the world will now AIM TO CONDEMN, not with a vote but with a veto. While you were once defiant, you have now ...
Richard Lederer, 1998
3
Black Earth and Ivory Tower: New American Essays from Farm ...
Reading. on. the. Sly. RON GILES Born in Birmingham, Alabama, Ron Giles grew up on a cotton farm in the northeastern corner of that state, where he lived with his mother, sister, and grandmother. As "Reading on the Sly" artfully ...
Zachary Michael Jack, 2005
4
Alcohol and Temperance in Modern History: An International ...
During this phase, tolerance is being built and the consumption is fairly heavy. The prodromal or warning phase is marked by the appearance of blackouts, gulping of drinks,and drinking on the sly. The phase finds the drinker preoccupied with ...
Jack S. Blocker, David M. Fahey, Ian R. Tyrrell, 2003
5
Shooting Digital: Pro Tips for Taking Great Pictures with ...
It's also easy to take photos on the sly with a digital camera because many digital cameras are also extremely silent when the shutter is released. Morton reminds photographers to show respect for local customs and not shoot if anyone objects  ...
Mikkel Aaland, 2007
6
The Education of the Southern Belle: Higher Education and ...
Miss Brown and Mr. Peterslie were discovered "courting on the sly" and both were dismissed immediately on the grounds of neglect of duty. At most schools, however, local bachelors were permitted to escort the teachers home from church  ...
Christie Anne Farnham, 1994
7
A Deeper Blue: The Life and Music of Townes Van Zandt
... and unaffected, and the poetic sensibility shows an already well-honed maturity—the use of the place names in each verse: Tennessee, Tuscaloosa, Muskogee; the offhand vernacular: “she cleaned me out and hit it on the sly”; “we robbed a ...
Robert Earl Hardy, 2008
8
The Unvarnished New Testament
When you pray, duck into the store-room and lock the door and pray to your Father on the sly. And your Father, watching on the sly, will pay you back. "When you pray, don't babble on like pagans who think they can make themselves heard  ...
Andy Gaus, 1991
9
The Cherokee Strip: A Tale of an Oklahoma Boyhood
When we finished eating we played Wink on the Sly. Eva would always wink at me and I would always wink at her. When the party broke up Dan and I and Eugene took the girls home. We took Ruby home and then we were going to take some ...
Marquis James, 2003
10
The New Era of Management
... who were accustomed to coming to work and putting in their solid eight hours. The previous CEO really blew his stack when the two presented four new drink flavors they had concocted on the sly. He was so angry about the unauthorized ...
Richard L. Daft, 2008

10 NEWS ITEMS WHICH INCLUDE THE TERM «ON THE SLY»

Find out what the national and international press are talking about and how the term on the sly is used in the context of the following news items.
1
Judge OKs use of slaying suspect's affairs, finances
Nassios also contended jurors needed to know just how many women Clark was sleeping with on the sly, lying to those women and to Eldridge ... «Knoxville News Sentinel, Jul 15»
2
Collector furious as Chinese antiques returned
“It's France's heritage which is suffering,” he said, denouncing what he called an improper legal process and “an export on the sly. «The Daily Star, Jul 15»
3
High end summer vacations for pot lovers
... only way you can legally consume marijuana in a hotel room, but even that is best done on the sly, with a pocket vaporizer, as the city's hotels ... «Fortune, Jul 15»
4
5SOS's Ashton Irwin Comments on One Direction's Louis …
According to Ashton Irwin, drinking beer on the sly is a great Australian tradition. Like any true blue Australian, Irwin once argued with a ... «Movie News Guide, Jul 15»
5
Nick Jonas, Selena Gomez officially dating? Olivia Culpo, Justin …
She apparently made her way out the bus on the sly but NickLena fans are all eyes on her. But the dating rumors really swirled all over the ... «Venture Capital Post, Jul 15»
6
In defence of Dogs
"Sadly, this has been happening on the sly for many years in Kerala - people poison dogs in their locality and so on. I'm really glad that a ... «Bangalore Mirror, Jul 15»
7
Stalker guilty of 'revenge porn'
Scarborough Magistrates heard that Brewer even took pictures of her on the sly when she was out, after she ended their relationship earlier this ... «Scarborough Today, Jul 15»
8
Swim attempt of English Channel awaits Plymouth woman
Also on the sly, Zemlin in 2013 booked her boat captain for the channel crossing, which requires a two-year lead time. The last two big tests ... «Minneapolis Star Tribune, Jul 15»
9
Facebook: The new eBay of counterfeit goods?
... wallets and even pens and shoes from every fashion house you can name and that's sold on the sly in Dubai, for a price most happily pay. «gulfnews.com, Jul 15»
10
Tamil Nadu's Vanishing Wetlands
Realtors admit that the conversion is happening on the sly even now. “They have evolved a backdoor method as the normal process to convert ... «The New Indian Express, Jul 15»

REFERENCE
« EDUCALINGO. On the sly [online]. Available <https://educalingo.com/en/dic-en/on-the-sly>. Apr 2024 ».
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