lurk

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Pronunciation

• (British) IPA: /lɜːk/
• (America) enPR: lûrk, IPA: /lɝk/

Verb

lurk (lurks, present participle lurking; past and past participle lurked)

1. To remain concealed in order to ambush.
2. To remain unobserved.
   • 1898, J. Meade Falkner, Moonfleet Chapter 4

     Thus my plight was evil indeed, for I had nothing now to burn to give me light, and knew that 'twas no use setting to grout till I could see to go about it. Moreover, the darkness was of that black kind that is never found beneath the open sky, no, not even on the darkest night, but lurks in close and covered places and strains the eyes in trying to see into it.

3. To hang out or wait around a location, preferably without drawing attention to oneself.
   • 2005, Plato, Sophist. Translation by Lesley Brown. 235c.

     if we find the sophist lurking, we must round him up by royal command of the argument

4. (Internet) To view an internet forum without posting comments.
5. (UK, naval slang, transitive) To saddle (a person) with an undesirable task or duty.
   • 2015, Andrew Gordon, The Rules of the Game: Jutland and British Naval Command

     As junior dogsbody, he was lurked with this mission.

Translations

• French: se cacher, s'embusquer
• German: lauern
• Italian: appostarsi, acquattarsi, celarsi
• Portuguese: espreitar
• Russian: таи́ться
• Spanish: acechar, agazaparse

Translations

• French: se cacher, se dissimuler
• Spanish: ocultarse, esconderse

Translations

• French: traîner
• German: lauern
• Portuguese: espreitar
• Russian: таи́ться
• Spanish: merodear, vigilar, urguetear

Translations

• Spanish: observar, mirar, intrusar

Noun

lurk (plural lurks)

1. The act of lurking.
   • 1921: George Colby Borley, The Lost Horizon

     There were enemies on the lurk and time was against him.

   • 1955: John Maxwell Edmonds Longus, Daphnis et Chloe

     […] barked furiously and made at him as at a wolf, and before he could wholly rise from the lurk because of the sudden consternation, […]

   • 2004: Charles Reade, A Simpleton

     At two PM a man had called on him, and had produced one of his advertisements, and had asked him if that was all square—no bobbies on the lurk.

2. (obsolete) A swindle.

Translations

• Spanish: acecho ambush, ocultamiento hide, merodeo hang out, mironeo Internet

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