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noun
1.
a person employed by a government to obtain secret information or intelligence about another, usually hostile, country, especially with reference to military or naval affairs.
2.
a person who keeps close and secret watch on the actions and words of another or others.
3.
a person who seeks to obtain confidential information about the activities, plans, methods, etc., of an organization or person, especially one who is employed for this purpose by a competitor: an industrial spy.
4.
the act of spying.
verb (used without object)
5.
to observe secretively or furtively with hostile intent (often followed by on or upon).
6.
to act as a spy; engage in espionage.
7.
to be on the lookout; keep watch.
8.
to search for or examine something closely or carefully.
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Spy on
is always a great word to know.
So is slumgullion. Does it mean:
| a scrap or morsel of food left at a meal. |
| a stew of meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc. |
verb (used with object)
9.
to catch sight of suddenly; espy; descry: to spy a rare bird overhead.
10.
to discover or find out by observation or scrutiny (often followed by out).
11.
to observe (a person, place, enemy, etc.) secretively or furtively with hostile intent.
12.
to inspect or examine or to search or look for closely or carefully.
Origin:
1200–50; (v.) Middle English spien, aphetic variant of espien to espy; (noun) Middle English, aphetic variant of espy a spy < Old French espie
1200–50; (v.) Middle English spien, aphetic variant of espien to espy; (noun) Middle English, aphetic variant of espy a spy < Old French espie
Related forms
spy·ship, noun
out·spy, verb (used with object), -spied, -spy·ing.
su·per·spy, noun, plural -spies.
un·spied, adjective
un·spy·ing, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source
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Link To spy on
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
spy
mid-13c., from O.Fr. espier "to spy," espie "a spy," probably from Frankish *spehon, from P.Gmc. *spekh- (cf. O.H.G. *spehon "to look out for, scout, spy," Ger. spähen "to spy," M.Du. spien), the Gmc. survivals of the productive PIE root *spek- "to look" (see scope (1)).
EXPANDSpy-glass "telescope, field-glass" is from 1706.
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Idioms & Phrases
spy on
Secretly or furtively observe someone or something, as in The children loved spying on the grownups, or The company sent him to spy on the competitor's sales force. [Early 1600s]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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