Meanings
- collectiveuncountableThe representation in words or pictures of goods, services, the name, the trade mark or the activities of a producer of goods or a provider of services in media products when such representation is intended by the publisher to serve advertising and might mislead the public as to its nature.
I have not the slightest objection to any temper Mr. Allenmay show, but when he attributes a motive, and more than hints that I am abusing these columns by surreptitious advertising, I disdain to do further battle with him.
1874 October 4, Frederick John Osmond, The English Mechanic and World of Science, volume 19, page 102a1 more example
Once this lottery owned a State, and openly offered it a princely revenue of millions for a renewal of the law which gave it a respectable habitation and a convenient foothold from which it might lure its victims month by month. Now it is an outlaw, and seeks its prey by surreptitious advertising on the play-bills of theatres.
1895 August 3, Harper's Weekly, volume 39, page 721bSynonyms: native advertising, brand story, embedded marketing, product placement
Synonyms & antonyms
nounThe representation in words or pictures of goods, services, the name, the trade mark or the activities of a producer of goods or a provider of services in media products when such representation is intended by the publisher to serve advertising and might mislead the public as to its nature.
Cite this entry
surreptitious advertising. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/surreptitious%20advertising
“surreptitious advertising.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/surreptitious%20advertising. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “surreptitious advertising,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/surreptitious%20advertising.
Source: surreptitious advertising on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.