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eavesdropper

 - 4 dictionary results
Eavesdropper
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eaves⋅drop

  [eevz-drop] verb, -dropped, -drop⋅ping, noun
Use eavesdropper in a Sentence
–verb (used without object)
1. to listen secretly to a private conversation.
–verb (used with object)
2. Archaic. to eavesdrop on.
–noun Also, eaves⋅drip  [eevz-drip] .
3. water that drips from the eaves.
4. the ground on which such water falls.
Origin:
bef. 900; (n.) ME evesdrope, evesdripe, OE yfesdrype; as v., prob. back formation from eavesdropper, late ME evisdroppyr, appar. lit., one who stands on the eavesdrop in order to listen to conversations inside the house; see eave, drop, drip

Related forms:
eavesdropper, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Eavesdropper
Spy Equipment For Surveillance Professional Grade Made Public
www.BrickHouseSecurity.com/spy
eaves·drop   (ēvz'drŏp')   
intr.v.   eaves·dropped, eaves·drop·ping, eaves·drops
To listen secretly to the private conversation of others.

[Probably back-formation from eavesdropper, one who eavesdrops, from Middle English evesdropper, from evesdrop, place where water falls from the eaves, from Old English yfesdrype; see upo in Indo-European roots.]
eaves'drop'per n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

eavesdropper 
1487, from O.E. yfesdrype "place around a house where the rainwater drips off the roof," from eave (q.v.) + drip. Technically, "one who stands at walls or windows to overhear what's going on inside."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Legal Dictionary

Main Entry: eaves·drop
Function: intransitive verb
Inflected Forms: eaves·dropped; eaves·drop·ping
: to listen secretly to what is being said in private without the consent of the speaker —compare BUG, WIRETAP —eaves·drop·per noun
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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