secretly
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secretly
In secret, privately, and without others knowing about it. Often describes an inner wish, a hope, or an action.
Obwohl sie nach außen hin zustimmte, war sie insgeheim gegen den Plan.
Although she outwardly agreed, she was secretly against the plan.
'Insgeheim' (secretly) is an old form made up of 'in' and 'geheim' (secret). You can therefore think of it literally as 'im Geheimen' (in secret). It describes an action or thought that remains hidden.
Er war insgeheim stolz auf den Erfolg seiner Tochter.
He was secretly proud of his daughter's success.
As an adverb, 'insgeheim' (secretly) usually stands in the middle of the sentence, directly before the part it describes. It can also stand at the beginning of the sentence to particularly emphasize the secret aspect; then the verb follows in second position.
Sie hoffte insgeheim auf eine positive Antwort.
She secretly hoped for a positive answer.
The word is very often used with verbs of thinking, feeling, or wishing. Typical combinations are: insgeheim hoffen (to secretly hope), insgeheim wünschen (to secretly wish), insgeheim denken (to secretly think), insgeheim wissen (to secretly know), or insgeheim lachen (to secretly laugh).
Obwohl er es nicht zeigte, hat er sich insgeheim sehr über das Geschenk gefreut.
Although he didn't show it, he was secretly very pleased about the gift.
quiet / still
A stille Hoffnung (quiet hope) remains unobtrusive and is usually not expressed. Insgeheim emphasizes more strongly that other people do not know about the hope. When other people’s lack of knowledge is important, insgeheim is the better choice; otherwise, still can describe a hidden, restrained hope.
Mara hoffte insgeheim auf eine zweite Chance, ohne dass ihre Kollegen davon wussten.
Mara secretly hoped for a second chance without her colleagues knowing about it.
Mara bewahrte ihre stille Hoffnung auf eine zweite Chance.
Mara held on to her quiet hope of a second chance.
