- See Also:
- Recent searches:
- View All

insidious

UK:^*^*UK and possibly other pronunciationsUK and possibly other pronunciations/ɪnˈsɪdiəs/US:USA pronunciation: IPA and respellingUSA pronunciation: IPA/ɪnˈsɪdiəs/ ,USA pronunciation: respelling(in sid′ē əs)

in•sid•i•ous /ɪnˈsɪdiəs/USA pronunciation adj.

treacherous;
sneaky and dishonest:an insidious plan.
operating or proceeding without being noticed but with serious effect:an insidious disease.

See -sid-.

in•sid•i•ous (in sid′ē əs),USA pronunciation adj.

intended to entrap or beguile:an insidious plan.
stealthily treacherous or deceitful:an insidious enemy.
operating or proceeding in an inconspicuous or seemingly harmless way but actually with grave effect:an insidious disease.

Latin insidiōsus deceitful, equivalent. to insidi(ae) (plural) an ambush (derivative of insidēre to sit in or on) + -ōsus -ous
1535–45

in•sid′i•ous•ly, adv.
in•sid′i•ous•ness, n.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

insidious /ɪnˈsɪdɪəs/ adj

stealthy, subtle, cunning, or treacherous
working in a subtle or apparently innocuous way, but nevertheless deadly: an insidious illness

Etymology: 16th Century: from Latin insidiōsus cunning, from insidiae an ambush, from insidēre to sit in; see insessorialinˈsidiously adv inˈsidiousness n

'insidious' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):

sly - snaky - cobweb - guile - pernicious - Rasputin - undermine - worm - snake - subtle

In Lists: New vocabulary, Dictionary of feelings, intentions, behaviour... , more...

Synonyms: treacherous, false, sly, sneaky, more...

🗣️Forum discussions with the word(s) "insidious" in the title:

Insidious changes
insidious charm that separates the nymphet from such coevals
slapped with an insidious and thoroughly modern gloss
that most insidious of all Buddhist propositions
the rumor was of the <dilatory / insidious> variety
This was <bullying> of an insidious sort

Visit the English Only Forum.
Help WordReference: Ask in the forums yourself.

Look up "insidious" at Merriam-Webster
Look up "insidious" at dictionary.com

Go to Preferences page and choose from different actions for taps or mouse clicks.

URL: https://www.wordreference.com/definition/insidious

⇱ insidious - WordReference.com Dictionary of English

insidious