sneaks up

verb

present tense third-person singular of sneak up
as in creeps up

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for sneaks up
  1. turns up
  2. shows up
Verb
  • Sometimes an examination turns up nothing wrong with the ear itself.
    — Angela Haupt, Time, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Her cousin, played by Azam Quadri, turns up without warning after 15 years away, and his visit brings back the events that once split the family.
    — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of turns up
Verb
  • Every bet made with investment money takes from her future, and that cost never shows up on the app.
    — Jamie Franco, global macro and cross-asset strategist, CNBC, 21 Oct. 2026
  • By the time his daughter shows up, flanked by her mom and upright dentist stepdad, Lee’s moved on from scolding the room to thanking his mother for believing him.
    — Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of shows up
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

sneaks
sneaks up
sneak thief
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Sneaks up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sneaks%20up. Accessed 29 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of shindig

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All