# stealth

> English word · Noun · IPA /stɛlθ/ · frequency rank #14,424

## Definitions
1. The attribute or characteristic of acting in secrecy, or in such a way that the actions are unnoticed or difficult to detect by others.
2. An act of secrecy, especially one involving thievery.

## Etymology
From Middle English stelthe, from Old English stǣlþ, from Proto-Germanic *stēliþō, to Proto-Germanic *stelaną (“to steal, to sneak”) + *-iþō, equivalent to steal + -th (abstract nominal suffix). Compare Old English stalu (“theft, stealth”), Old High German stāla (“theft”), German Diebstahl (“theft”).

## Easily confused with
- **stealthy** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stealth-vs-stealthy)
- **steal** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/steal-vs-stealth)
- **steals** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/steals-vs-stealth)
- **sheath** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sheath-vs-stealth)

## Common misspellings (11)
`setalth`, `sstealth`, `staelth`, `stealht`, `steallth`, `stealthh`, `stealtth`, `steatlh`, `stelath`, `sttealth`, `tsealth`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/stealth