1.
to avoid being seen; to hide from public eyes; to act secretly
To deliberately avoid the notice or attention of others, often because of something one wants to keep private.
人目を忍んで会った。
They met in secret, away from prying eyes.
二人は人目を忍んで手をつないだ。
The two held hands, hiding from the eyes of others.
有名人は人目を忍んで裏口から店に入ることが多い。
Celebrities often enter shops through the back door to avoid being seen.
A somewhat literary expression meaning to avoid public notice. 忍ぶ here means "to endure" or "to conceal" — the expression literally means "to hide from people's eyes."
COMPONENTS:
- 人目: the eyes of others, public notice
- 忍ぶ: to endure; to conceal; to bear patiently
COMMON CONTEXTS:
- Secret meetings or relationships
- Celebrities avoiding attention
- Doing something privately that one is embarrassed about
RELATED EXPRESSIONS:
- 人目を避ける: to avoid people's eyes — more neutral and modern
- 人目を気にする: to care about what others see — about self-consciousness
- 人目につく: to catch people's attention — the opposite: being noticed
- こっそり: secretly, stealthily — everyday adverb for doing things unseen