Clandestine Meaning
/klænˈdɛst(a)ɪn/Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Listen pronunciation
Definition
adjDone or kept in secret, sometimes to conceal an illicit or improper purpose.
adjNot recognized as a regular member.
Sentence Examples
He was suspected of being active in a clandestine movement.
Sami and Layla began a clandestine relationship.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
None
CEFR Practice Quiz
The spies organized a ____ meeting in the abandoned warehouse at midnight.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The spies held several ____ meetings in a dark alley.
Word Origin & History
From Latin clandestīnus (“secret, concealed”); compare French clandestin.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Monimia, who while she yielded to his earnest entreaties had always felt, from the natural rectitude of her understanding, the impropriety of their clandestine correspondence, would, he feared, be more than ever sensible of her indiscretion, when she found that a servant was entrusted with it..."
— 1793, Charlotte Smith, chapter 1, in The Old Manor House, volume 3:
"Whether the torments of absence were softened by a clandestine correspondence, let us not inquire. Mr. and Mrs. Morland never did."
— 1818, Jane Austen, chapter 31, in Northanger Abbey:
"Wildeve's clandestine plan with her was to take a little gravel in his hand and hold it to the crevice at the top of the window shutter, which was on the outside, so that it should fall with a gentle rustle, resembling that of a mouse, between shutter and glass."
— 1878, Thomas Hardy, chapter 11, in The Return of the Native:
"Lady Bullingdon could not, of course, countenance such an arrangement for a moment, and the two unhappy persons escaped for a clandestine marriage."
— 1912, G. K. Chesterton, chapter 9, in Manalive:
"Bodies were always a nuisance -- even the small guinea-pig bodies from the slight clandestine experiments in West’s room at the boarding-house."
— 1922, H. P. Lovecraft, Herbert West: Reanimator:
Explore More C1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The spies organized a ____ meeting in the abandoned warehouse at midnight.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The spies held several ____ meetings in a dark alley.