sneak up on

English

Verb

sneak up (third-person singular simple present sneaks up, present participle sneaking up, simple past and past participle sneaked up or (chiefly US, informal) snuck up)

1. To approach a person or animal without being seen or heard

   If you sneak up from behind like that, you'll give me a heart attack!

2. To deliver a sudden effect, often unexpectedly and without warning.

   Watch out for that brown liquor. It sneaks up on you quickly.

Alternative forms

• sneak up on

Translations

to sneak up on

Cherokee: ᎦᏃᎵ (ganoli) Chinese: Mandarin: 偷偷走近 German: sich anschleichen Latin: obrēpō, subeō Polish: skradać się (pl) Ukrainian: підкрадатися (pidkradatysja)

Anagrams

• seapunk, unspeak