Stealth

noun; also attributive/adjective (as in "stealth aircraft", "stealth taxation")

/stɛlθ/

In military technology, the design philosophy and suite of techniques used to make aircraft, missiles, ships, or vehicles less detectable by radar, infrared sensors, and other surveillance systems.

✍️ Usage in a UPSC answer

Critics argue that financing welfare schemes through fiscal drag and unindexed slabs amounts to taxation by stealth, eroding parliamentary accountability since the burden rises without any explicit vote in the legislature.

Synonyms

secrecysurreptitiousnessfurtivenesscovertnessclandestinenessstealthiness

Antonyms

opennesstransparencycandourovertness

🌱 Word Family

stealthy (adj), stealthily (adv), stealthiness (n), stealthy (adj), stealth (n/attrib adj)

🔡 Root

Old English stǣlþ = theft, secret action; stelan = to steal; -th = abstract noun suffix

📜 Etymology

From Middle English stelthe ("theft, secret action"), from Old English stǣlþ, related to stelan ("to steal"); the military-technology sense emerged in the 1980s as radar-evading aircraft design advanced.

🧠 Memory Hook

Hidden inside "stealth" is "steal" plus -th: to steal something requires moving in secret, undetected — stealth is the manner of the silent thief.

🔬 Science & Technology 📖 Seen in: Defence Technology — Missiles, Nuclear...

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