insidiously [
ɪn'sɪdɪəslɪ]
ad. 阴险, 狡诈, (疾病)不知不觉之间加剧, 伺机陷害, 毒而诱人, 隐袭, 隐匿
insidiously[ adv ]
in a harmfully insidious manner
<adv.all>
these drugs act insidiously
Insidious \In*sid"i*ous\, a. [L. insidiosus, fr. insidiae an
ambush, fr. insidere to sit in; pref. in- + sedere to sit:
cf. F. insidieux. See {Sit}.]
1. Lying in wait; watching an opportunity to insnare or
entrap; deceitful; sly; treacherous; -- said of persons;
as, the insidious foe. ``The insidious witch.'' --Cowper.
2. Intended to entrap; characterized by treachery and deceit;
as, insidious arts.
The insidious whisper of the bad angel. --Hawthorne.
3. Acting or proceeding unobserved or in a seemingly harmless
manner, but slowly or eventually doing great damage; as,
an insidious disease; an insidious plot.
[PJC]
{Insidious disease} (Med.), a disease existing, without
marked symptoms, but ready to become active upon some
slight occasion; a disease not appearing to be as bad as
it really is.
Syn: Crafty; wily; artful; sly; designing; guileful;
circumventive; treacherous; deceitful; deceptive. --
{In*sid"i*ous*ly}, adv. -- {In*sid"i*ous*ness}, n.
- But drugs are more treacherous, more insidiously addictive.
- More insidiously, attempts to keep up with defence spending spring from a desire to impress the Americans and to maintain a place at top tables.