sneak
sneak — 動詞
1. to move quietly and without attracting notice when going to, from, or past a pla
潛入；溜走
祕密移動或帶入某人某物
to move quietly and without attracting notice when going to, from, or past a place; or to bring, take, or put a person or thing somewhere without being seen or caught.
Ravindra sneaked out of the house while his parents were asleep.
Ravindra 趁父母睡著時偷偷溜出家門。
intransitive: sneak out of [place]
Henrik sneaked his phone into the exam room without anyone noticing.
Henrik 趁沒人注意，把手機偷偷帶進考場。
transitive: sneak [object] into [place]
The cat sneaked up on the bird in the garden.
那隻貓偷偷靠近花園裡的小鳥。
Tendai sneaked a note into Sumin's bag during lunch.
Tendai 在午餐時偷偷把一張紙條放進 Sumin 的書包裡。
Jessica sneaked past the security guard through the back entrance.
Jessica 從後門偷偷溜過警衛身邊。
文法句型
sneak + adverb/preposition
sneak + object + adverb/preposition
sneak up on + object
用法筆記
Common in the pattern sneak + adverb/preposition (out, in, past, around, up). The past tense can be sneaked (standard) or snuck (informal, especially in American English).
常見錯誤
2. to inform a person in authority, such as a teacher or parent, about another pers
打小報告
向師長等告發別人的不當行為
to inform a person in authority, such as a teacher or parent, about another person's behaviour that breaks rules, often in a way that others consider mean or dishonourable.
Romi sneaked on her younger brother for eating sweets before dinner.
Romi 向媽媽告狀，說弟弟晚飯前偷吃糖果。
sneak on [someone] + for doing [something]
Omar sneaked to the principal about the students smoking behind the gym.
Omar 向校長打小報告，說有學生在體育館後面抽菸。
The other children called Christopher a sneak for telling the teacher about the broken window.
其他孩子罵 Christopher 是抓耙仔，因為他向老師通報窗戶被打破的事。
Nobody wanted to play with Sari after she sneaked on them for using bad language.
Sari 向大人告狀說他們講髒話之後，就沒有人想跟她玩了。
- cover up
to hide someone's wrongdoing instead of reporting it
文法句型
sneak on + person
sneak to + authority figure
用法筆記
Primarily used by and about children in British English. This sense has a strong negative connotation — the person who sneaks is seen as untrustworthy. In American English, tattle (on) is more common.
常見錯誤
3. to direct a quick, secret glance at a person or thing that you are not supposed
偷看；窺視
快速而祕密地看某人或某物
to direct a quick, secret glance at a person or thing that you are not supposed to be looking at.
Vinícius sneaked a look at the test paper when the teacher turned around.
Vinícius 趁老師轉身時偷偷看了一眼考卷。
sneak a look at [something]
Tamar sneaked a peek at the birthday presents hidden in the wardrobe.
Tamar 偷偷瞄了一眼藏在衣櫃裡的生日禮物。
Reema sneaked a glance at her watch during the long meeting.
Reema 在漫長的會議中偷偷看了一下手錶。
The journalist sneaked a look at the confidential folder on the manager's desk.
那名記者偷看了一眼經理桌上機密的檔案夾。
文法句型
sneak a look at + object
sneak a peek at + object
sneak a glance at + object
用法筆記
Always used with a following noun phrase describing the act of looking: a look, a peek, a glance. The object of the look is typically introduced by at.
常見錯誤
4. to take something without permission, especially something small or of little va
偷拿
未經許可拿走小而不貴重的物品
to take something without permission, especially something small or of little value, often in a way meant to avoid being noticed.
Someone sneaked Reema's lunch from the office fridge yesterday.
昨天有人偷偷拿走了 Reema 放在辦公室冰箱的午餐。
sneak [object] from [place]
Tamar sneaked a few coins from her mother's purse when she was not looking.
Tamar 趁媽媽不注意時從她的錢包裡偷拿了幾個硬幣。
The boy sneaked a chocolate bar from the shop while the cashier was busy.
那個男孩趁店員忙碌時從店裡偷拿了一條巧克力。
Henrik sneaked some of his roommate's snacks from the shared kitchen.
Henrik 從共用的廚房裡偷拿了他室友的一些零食。
- return
to give something back
文法句型
sneak + object + from + person/place
用法筆記
Unlike steal, sneak emphasises the secrecy and the small scale of the taking rather than the legal seriousness. The object taken is usually something like food, money, or a small item.
常見錯誤
sneak — 名詞
1. a person, especially a child at school, who secretly tells an authority figure w
告密者
向權威人士告發別人的人
a person, especially a child at school, who secretly tells an authority figure when someone else has done something wrong, and is therefore disliked or distrusted.
The other prisoners hated the sneak who told the guards about the escape plan.
其他囚犯都痛恨那個向獄警告密逃跑計畫的抓耙仔。
derogatory noun: a sneak who tells [about something]
Nobody trusted Eva after the teachers found out she was a sneak.
老師發現 Eva 是告密者之後，就沒有人相信她了。
The novel's main character is a sneak who reports neighbours to the secret police.
那本小說的主角是個向秘密警察檢舉鄰居的告密者。
Being called a sneak is one of the worst labels a child can get.
在學校裡，被叫做抓耙仔是小孩最怕的標籤之一。
用法筆記
Strongly negative and insulting. Used mainly among children and teenagers, or metaphorically to criticise someone who secretly reports on others.
2. a light, comfortable shoe with a rubber sole, worn for sports, running, or casua
運動鞋
輕便舒適、適合運動的鞋子
a light, comfortable shoe with a rubber sole, worn for sports, running, or casual daily wear.
Jessica bought a pair of white sneakers for her morning runs in the park.
Jessica 買了一雙白色運動鞋，早上到公園跑步時穿。
plural form sneakers most common
The sports teacher told the students to wear their sneakers to gym class.
體育老師叫學生穿運動鞋來上體育課。
Romi's new sneakers were covered in mud after the football game.
Romi 的新運動鞋在足球賽後沾滿了泥巴。
Christopher tied his sneakers tightly before starting the race.
Christopher 在比賽開始前把運動鞋的鞋帶綁緊。
- trainer
British English equivalent
- athletic shoe
more formal term
- running shoe
specific type of sneaker for running
用法筆記
Almost always used in the plural form sneakers. In British English, the equivalent word is trainer. The singular sneak is not used for this meaning; the singular form is sneaker.
常見錯誤
3. a short running play in American football where the quarterback dives forward th
四分衛短衝
美式足球中四分衛短距離持球衝刺
a short running play in American football where the quarterback dives forward through the defensive line, usually to gain a yard or two.
The quarterback executed a perfect sneak and gained two yards on the play.
那名四分衛成功執行了一次短衝，推進兩碼。
American football idiom: quarterback sneak
The coach called a quarterback sneak on fourth down with one yard to go.
教練在第四檔還差一碼的情況下下令採用四分衛短衝。
Their defence stopped the sneak, and the team lost possession of the ball.
對方的防守擋住了這次短衝，球隊失去了球權。
On third down, the quarterback attempted a sneak but was tackled at the line.
在第三檔，四分衛嘗試短衝，但在線就被攔截了。
用法筆記
Almost always used in the compound quarterback sneak. This is a technical sports term, unlikely to appear in general conversation outside American football contexts.
sneak — 形容詞
1. happening, done, or shown without being announced or known in advance, so that o
偷偷的
未經宣布或事先不讓眾人知道的
happening, done, or shown without being announced or known in advance, so that only a select few people know about it.
The studio held a sneak preview of the film for critics and journalists.
電影公司為影評人和記者舉辦了一場神祕試映會。
sneak preview — regular compound noun
Ravindra took a sneak peek at the exam results before they were officially posted.
Ravindra 在考試成績正式公布前偷偷看了一眼。
sneak peek — informal compound noun
The troops launched a sneak attack on the enemy camp just before dawn.
部隊在黎明前對敵軍陣地發動了一場突襲。
The company organised a sneak tour of the new factory for important investors.
公司為重要投資者安排了一場新工廠的祕密參觀。
- secret
more general; can be used in any position in a sentence
- clandestine
more formal and serious; implies deliberate concealment
- covert
formal, often used in military or intelligence contexts
文法句型
sneak + noun
usually in compound nouns
用法筆記
The adjective sneak is always used before a noun (attributive) and is almost never used predicatively (❌ 'The preview was sneak'). It forms common compound nouns like sneak preview, sneak peek, and sneak attack.