Liberal Dictionary English Dictionary
adjective
- characterized by, done in, or executed with secrecy or concealment, especially for purposes of subversion or deception; private or surreptitious: Their clandestine meetings went undiscovered for two years.
adjective
- secret and concealed, often for illicit reasons; furtive
1560s, from Latin clandestinus “secret, hidden,” from clam “secretly,” from adverbial derivative of base of celare “to hide” (see cell), perhaps on model of intestinus “internal.” Related: Clandestinely. As a noun form, there is awkward clandestinity (clandestineness apparently being a dictionary word).