Pry vs Sneak - What's the difference?
pry | sneak |
To look where one is not welcome; to be nosey.
To look closely and curiously at.
* Shakespeare
The act of prying
An excessively inquisitive person
A lever.
Leverage.
To use leverage to open or widen. (See also prise and prize.)
One who sneaks; one who moves stealthily to acquire an item or information.
A cheat; a con artist; a trickster
An informer; a tell-tale.
(obsolete, cricket) A ball bowled so as to roll along the ground; a daisy-cutter
To creep or go stealthily; to come or go while trying to avoid detection, as a person who does not wish to be seen.
To take something stealthily without permission.
(dated) To hide, especially in a mean or cowardly manner.
* Wake
(informal, especially with on) To inform an authority about another's misdemeanours; to tell tales; to grass.
In advance; before release to the general public.
In a stealthy or surreptitious manner.
As verbs the difference between pry and sneak
is that pry is to look where one is not welcome; to be nosey while sneak is to creep or go stealthily; to come or go while trying to avoid detection, as a person who does not wish to be seen.As nouns the difference between pry and sneak
is that pry is the act of prying while sneak is one who sneaks; one who moves stealthily to acquire an item or information.As an adjective sneak is
in advance; before release to the general public.pry
English
Etymology 1
From (etyl) pryen, . More at (l).Verb
(en-verb)- Watch thou and wake when others be asleep, / To pry into the secrets of the state.
Noun
Etymology 2
1800, ("lever"), construed as a plural noun or as a 3rd person singular verb.Noun
(pries)Verb
(en-verb)sneak
English
Noun
(en noun)- My little brother is such a sneak - yesterday I caught him trying to look through my diary.
- I can't believe I gave that sneak $50 for a ticket when they were selling for $20 at the front gate.
Verb
- He decided to sneak into the kitchen for a second cookie while his mom was on the phone.
- I went to sneak a chocolate but my dad caught me.
- [Slander] sneaks its head.
- If you sneak on me I'll bash you!
Usage notes
* The past and past participle snuck'' is primarily found in North American English, where it originated in the late 19th century as a dialectal form. It is still regarded as informal by some, but its use appears to be increasing in frequency and acceptability. It is occasionally found in British and Australian/Hiberno-English, too, though regarded as an American form. (SeeOxford Dictionaries, ''The Cambridge Guide to English Usage'', ''Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary'', ''Webster's New World College Dictionary .) * To sneak'' (take) something is not the same as to ''steal'' something. In this sense, ''sneak'' typically implies trying to avoid a supervisor's or guardian's mild displeasure or mild discipline, while ''steal indicates a more serious action and often the person stealing does not know the owner of the item being stolen.
Derived terms
* sneaker * sneaky * sneakily * sneakiness * sneak peek * sneak preview * sneak thief * sneak away * sneak in * sneak off * sneak out * sneak up/sneak up on * sneak aroundAdjective
(-)- The company gave us a sneak look at their new electronic devices.
- I was able to get a sneak peek at the guest list.
