covert.

1. Concealed or carried out secretly rather than openly acknowledged.

2. A thicket or similar cover in which animals can shelter, especially game.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• covert surveillance
• a covert operation

On the page

The covert surveillance left no trace in the public record.

She recognized a covert invitation in the otherwise ordinary note.

Usage notes

Primary category: literary. Forms: Comparative more covert; superlative most covert where gradation is meaningful. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings.