adj ·Moderate ·College level

Definitions

Adjective

1. 1
   Done or kept in secret, sometimes to conceal an illicit or improper purpose.

   "clandestine military operations"

2. 2
   Not recognized as a regular member.

Adjective

1. 1
   conducted with or marked by hidden aims or methods wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms

covertfurtivesurreptitiousabstrusearcanearcane

Antonyms

All antonyms

overt

Example

More examples

"He was suspected of being active in a clandestine movement."

Etymology

From Latin clandestīnus (“secret, concealed”); compare French clandestin.

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.