vaivihkaa

Finnish

Etymology

The initial vai- is probably from vaieta or vaiti, while vihkaa comes from the onomatopoeic verb vihkata (akin to vihistä).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈʋɑi̯ʋihkɑː/, [ˈʋɑ̝i̯ʋiçkɑ̝ː]
  • Rhymes: -ɑiʋihkɑː
  • Syllabification(key): vai‧vih‧kaa
  • Hyphenation(key): vai‧vih‧kaa

Adverb

vaivihkaa

  1. secretly, unnoticed, stealthily, furtively, surreptitiously, clandestinely (without drawing attention)
    Kun luokka käveli kirkkoon, pojat livahtivat vaivihkaa jäätelöbaariin.
    When the class was walking to the church, the boys slipped unnoticed into an ice cream parlor.

Derived terms

Further reading

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