Spy

Definition: Spy

Spy

Noun

1. A secret agent hired by a state to obtain (military) information about its enemies or by a business to obtain industrial secrets from competitors.

2. A secret watcher; someone who secretly watches other people; "my spies tell me that you had a good time last night".

Verb

1. Catch sight of.

2. Watch, observe, or inquire secretly.

3. Secretly collect sensitive or classified information; engage in espionage; "spy for the Russians".

Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
 

Date "spy" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1200. (references)

Note: Spy \Spy\, noun; plural Spies. [See Spy, v., and compare to Espy, noun]. (references)

Dream Interpretation

Literature

Multilingual Slang

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Synonyms: Spy

Information

Informer, eavesdropper, delator, detective; sleuth; mouchard, spy, newsmonger; messenger; amicus curiae.

Inquiry

Look for, look about for, look out for; scan, reconnoiter, explore, sound, rummage, ransack, pry, peer, look round; look over, go over, look through, go through; spy, overhaul.

Messenger

Reporter, gentleman of the press, representative of the press; penny-a-liner; special correspondent, own correspondent; spy, scout; informer.

Ship

Jet plane, rocket plane, jet liner, turbojet, prop-jet, propeller plane; corporate plane, corporate jet, private plane, private aviation; airline, common carrier; fighter, bomber, fighter-bomber, escort plane, spy plane; supersonic aircraft, subsonic aircraft.

The Drama

Western, horse opera; flick; spy film, love story, adventure film, documentary, nature film; pornographic film, smoker, skin flick, X-rated film.

Warning

Watchtower, beacon, signal post; lighthouse; (indication of locality). sentinel, sentry; watch, watchman; watch and ward; watchdog, bandog, housedog; patrol, patrolman, vedette, picket, bivouac, scout, spy, spial; undercover agent, mole, plainclothesman; advanced guard, rear guard; lookout.

Radar, AWACS, spy satellite, spy-in-the-sky, U plane, spy plane.

Crosswords: Spy

Swedish (be sick, cat, puke, spew, throw up, vomit, womit).

Listen, you insignificant, square-toed, pimpled-headed spy. (His Girl Friday; writing credit: Ben Hecht; Charles MacArthur)

So you're a spy. Do you have a name (The World Is Not Enough; writing credit: Neal Purvis; Robert Wade)

How much did they pay you to spy on us (Tank Girl; writing credit: Alan Martin; Jamie Hewlett)

A spy in love is a tool that has outlived its usefulness (Mata Hari; writing credit: Benjamin Glazer ; Leo Birinsky)

You're in the spy business and you don't have a safe house (The Invisible Man; writing credit: Craig Silverstein; Jonathan Glassner)

But like heaven above me, the spy who loved me, (NOBODY DOES IT BETTER; performing artist: CARLY SIMON)

Some underworld spy or the wife of a close friend (YOU'RE SO VAIN; performing artist: Carly Simon)

I spy tears in thier eyes (Sowing The Seeds of Love; performing artist: Tears For Fears)

Say there's a spy in one half of your brain (Lunatic To Love; performing artist: The Residents)

Spy Trap (1972)

To Catch a Spy (1971)

Destiny of a Spy (1969)

Come Spy with Me (1967)

Thigh Spy (1967)

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Books

• Spy Science: 40 Secret-Sleuthing, Code-Cracking, Spy-Catching Activities for Kids (reference)

• Spy Dust: Two Masters of Disguise Reveal the Tools and Operations That Helped Win the Cold War (reference)

• The Spy Next Door: The Extraordinary Secret Life of Robert Philip Hanssen, the Most Damaging FBI Agent in U.S. History (reference)

• Betrayal: The Story of Aldrich Ames, an American Spy (reference)

• The Spy Wore Silk : Aline, Countess of Romanones/Audio Cassettes (reference)

  (more book examples)

Theater & Movies

• Spy Kids (reference)

  (more DVD examples; more video examples)

Music

• Licence to Chill: Spy Vs Fly (reference)

• Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me: Music From The Motion Picture [SOUNDTRACK] (reference)

  (more classical music examples; more popular music examples)

High Tech

• No One Lives Forever 2: A Spy in H.A.R.M.'s Way (reference)

• HUMONGOUS Spy Fox: Dry Cereal ( Windows / Macintosh ) (reference)

• Spy Fox Dry Cereal (reference)

• Spy Fox: Operation Ozone (reference)

• Spy Fox Cheese Chase (Jewel Case) (reference)

  (more camera examples; more video game examples; more computer examples; more electronic examples; more software examples)

Consumer Goods

• SPY SHOP Replacement Gas Mask Canister (reference)

  (more baby examples; more wireless phone examples; more garden examples; more kitchen examples; more tool examples)

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

U-2 Spy Plane With Fictitious NASA Markings. Credit: NASA.

"Chemistry & Optics" / Spy [pseud.] Vincent Brooks, Day & Son, Lith. Credit: National Library of Medicine.

Sir William Crookes / Spy [pseud.] Petrolagar Laboratories, Inc. Credit: National Library of Medicine.

Army Medical / Spy [pseud.]. Credit: National Library of Medicine.

Get you up, Spy!. Credit: Library of Congress.

Spanish spy captured by the "Guasites" expedition ... Credit: Library of Congress.

Aided by the surprise of his onslaught, Lanyard succeeded in disarming the spy. Credit: Library of Congress.

Woman called in federal spy quiz. Credit: Library of Congress.

George Washington and the spy Harvey Birch / designed by T.H. Matteson ; engraved by Charles Burt, N.Y. Credit: Library of Congress.

The 33 convicted members of the Duquesne spy ring. Credit: Library of Congress.

Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits.

The whole person of Javert expressed the spy and the informer

Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

Civil Liberties

Russia

Other instances involve Charles Landreth of the Church of Christ in Volgograd who the local press accused of being a spy and Monty Race of the Evangelical Free Church of America. (references)

Economic History

Germany

Kiesinger's 1966-69 "Grand Coalition" included the FRG's two largest parties, CDU/CSU and the Social Democratic Party (SPD). In the 1969 election, the SPD--headed by Willy Brandt--gained enough votes to form a coalition government with the FDP. Chancellor Brandt remained head of government until May 1974, when he resigned after a senior member of his staff was uncovered as a spy for the East German intelligence service. (references)

Human Rights

Guatemala

During the trial, Ruben Chanax Sontay testified that retired Colonel Lima Estrada had recruited him to spy on Bishop Gerardi on behalf of military intelligence in exchange for a weekly payment. (references)

Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Expressions using "spy": hy spy ♦ labor spy ♦ Northern spy ♦ spy for ♦ spy glass ♦ spy hole ♦ spy money ♦ spy on ♦ spy on smb. ♦ spy out ♦ spy out the land ♦ spy plane ♦ spy ring ♦ spy satellite ♦ spy smb. ♦ spy the land ♦ spy upon ♦ spy upon smb. ♦ spy Wednesday ♦ weather spy. Additional references.

Beginning with "spy": spy-action-hardware, spy-boat, Spy-cartoons, spy-catcher, spy-catching, spy-flies, spy-fly, spy-glass, spy-hiring, spy-hole, spy-holes, spy-in-the, spy-in-the-sky, spy-in-training, spy-master, spy-phobia, spy-plane, spy-ring, spy-running, spy-school, spy-writers.

Ending with "spy": double-spy, girl-spy, I-spy, master-spy, Paddy-the-spy, super-spy.

Containing "spy": pub-spy-cum-physician.

Afrikaans

beloer (peep, peep upon, spy upon), begluurder, begluur (peep, peep at, spy upon). (various references)

Albanian

spiunoj (snitch, tell on), spiun (agent, company checkers, fink, lurcher, operator, overlooker, rat, Spier), përgjues (eavesdropper, listener, listener-in, peeper, peeping, watcher), përgjoj (eavesdrop, peek, peep, watch). (various references)

Arabic 

‏مراقب (controller, inspector, observed, observer, spotted, supervisor, watcher, watchman), ‏لمح (allude, behold, catch, catch sight of, descry, espy, glance at, glimpse, hint, imply, see, sight, suggest, twig), ‏لاحظ (catch sight of, eye, keep an eye on, look at, make out, note, notice, observe, perceive, realize, recognize, regard, remark, see, take notice, twig, view), ‏تجسس (eavesdrop, espionage, rat, sing, snoop, snooping, spying), ‏جاسوس (courier, emissary, nark, nose, operative, sleuth, stool pigeon), ‏العين (eye, optic, stool pigeon), ‏الجاسوس (intelligencer), ‏إستكشف سرا, ‏إستطلع (explore, probe, recognize, reconnoiter, reconnoitre), ‏راقب (blue pencil, case, close, control, keep an eye on, look, look after, look on, mind, monitor, observe, overlook, oversee, proctor, stake, superintend, supervise, tend, watch), ‏رأى (catch sight of, conceive, consider, discern, estimation, pronouncement, see, set eyes on, sight, suppose, take notice), ‏بحث بتدقيق عن, ‏بحث (brochure, cast about, consideration, discuss, discussion, disquisition, drilling for, examine, exploration, explore, fumble, hunt for, inquest, inquire, inquisition, investigate, investigation, look, look for, looking for, poke about, probe, prospection, pry, pursue, quest, research, retrieve, rummage, scrounge, scrutinize, search, see, see into, seek, seeking, sought, study, talk over, think through, treatise, try, ventilate). (various references)

Bulgarian 

таен агент (intelligencer, operative, pig), шпионирам (be on the lurk, gumshoe, tout), шпионин (intelligencer, lurcher, nark, nose, secret agent). (various references)

Chinese 

間諜 , 间谍 (Spies). (various references)

Czech

zkoumat (examine, explore, investigate, look into, research, weigh up), vyzvídat (pump), vyzvìdaè (intelligencer), rozvìdèík (scout), pozorovat (observe, study, watch), špión, špeh. (various references)

Danish

spion. (various references)

Dutch

spieden (peep, peep upon, spy upon), bespieden, beloeren. (various references)

Esperanto

spiono, spioni, observi kaŝe (peep, peep at, spy upon), kaŝobservi (peep, peep upon, spy upon), kaŝobservanto. (various references)

Faeroese

njósnari. (various references)

Farsi 

جاسوسی کردن (Espy, Pickeer, Stag), جاسوس (Informer, Snoop, Undercover). (various references)

Finnish

vakoilla (reconnoitre), vakoilija (secret agent), urkkija, urkkia (pry, search out), nuuskija. (various references)

French

espion. (various references)

Frisian

spionearje. (various references)

German

spionieren (poke about, poke around, snoop around, spying), Spion (busybody, mole, peephole, scout, spy hole, tout, window mirror). (various references)

Greek 

κατασκοπεύω (snoop, snoop around, spy on). (various references)

Hebrew 

מרגל, להבחין (discern, discriminate, know, make out, notice, observe, perceive, recognize, spot, tell), לרגל (because of, on the occasion of, owing to, whereupon), לסיר (reconnoitre, scout, tour, visit). (various references)

Hungarian

kém (agent, intelligence agent, lurker, mole, Spier, undercover man), besúgó (canary, crab, denunciator, finger, fink, informer, lurker, sneak, snitcher, squealer, stooge, stool pigeon, stoolie, sycophant), spion (fink). (various references)

Indonesian

suluh (scout, torch), mengintip (peep, pry, watch stealthily), melihat (apprehend, behold, discern, look, see, view), mata-mata (detective, emissary), cecunguk (cockroach, shady charter). (various references)

Italian

spiare (espial, spy on, wait for), spia (emissary, indication, informer, light, peephole, spyhole, squeaker). (various references)

Japanese Kanji 

斥候 (patrol, scout), 密偵 (emissary). (various references)

Japanese Katakana 

おんみつ (detective, privacy, secrecy), しのび (sneak thief, stealing, surreptitious visit to house of ill repute), まわしもの (secret agent), さぐり (probe, probing, sounding, stylet), せっこう (humble reference to one's own manuscript, mason, patrol, plaster, scout, stonemason), スパイ , みってい (emissary), てい (4th in rank, air, appearance, brotherly affection, condition, faithful service to those older, form, fourth sign of the Chinese calendar, shave, state, stopping, younger brother), ちょうほういん (intelligence operative). (various references)

Korean 

간첩 (Spies). (various references)

Manx

speeikey (descry, descrying, peep, peeping, pry, prying), speeikearagh (descrying, peep, pry, spying), speeikear, sheegyr, sheegerey (pry, prying), sheegeragh (listen in, prying), scryal, jannoo speeikearys er (reconnoitre), cronaghey. (various references)

Maya

cheeneb. (various references)

Papiamen

spioná, spion. (various references)

Pig Latin

yspay.(various references)

Portuguese

espião (beagle, bloodhound, emissary, intelligencer, spier, watcher), espionar (spy on). (various references)

Romanian

sta la pândã (ambuscade, ambush, be on the watch, lie in ambush, lie in wait, lurch, watch), spiona (intercept, poke one's nose into other people's affairs, reconnoitre), spion (beagle, intelligence, intelligencer, lurcher, surveillant, tale teller), zãri (appear, behold, catch, catch sight of, descry, discern, espy, get a peep, glimpse, notice, perceive, realize, rise, sight, view), vedea (behold, catch sight of, consider, descry, distinguish, do, find, get a peep, happen, notice, observe, perceive, realize, recognize, see, stand by, understand), pândi (ambush, lie by for, lie in wait for, lurk, watch, waylay), observator (columnist, correspondent, envoy, looker, lookout, observatory, observer, onlooker, scout, spectator), iscodi (fabricate, poke and pry, reconnoitre, sift), iscoadã (intelligence), descoperi (crack, descry, detect, disclose, discover, ferret, find out, fish, grub, hit, invent, lay open, nose out, open, reveal, rip, strike, uncover, unearth, unravel), depista (trace), cercetaş (explorer, feeler, guide, pioneer, scout). (various references)

Russian 

шпионить шпион;слежение шпионский, шпионить (spied, tout), шпион (a spy, double agent, emissary, infiltrator, intelligencer, keeker, rat, spier), лазутчик (emissary, infiltrator). (various references)

Serbo-Croatian

ugledati (catch sight of, come into view, get a hold, set eyes on, sight), žbir, špijunirati (keek), špijun (intelligencer, mole, operative, spier). (various references)

Spanish

espiar (keep watch on, look, look at, spy on, watch), espía (keek, snooper, Spier, spook, warping). (various references)

Swedish

spionera, spion (plant, tout), speja (scout), spana (reconnoitre, scout, search, trace), snoka (ferret, ferret about, pry, search, snoop). (various references)

Thai

นักสืบ (sleuth), สืบ, การสืบ. (various references)

Turkish

köstebek (infiltrator, mole, taupe), ispiyoncu (denunciator, finger, finger man, fink, informant, informer, rat, snout, split, squealler, stool pigeon, telltale), ispiyon (sneak, squeal), hafiye (detective, ferret, sleuth, snoop, split), gizlice gözetlemek (spy on smb.), gözlemek (long, Miss, monitor, observe, sight, spy out, watch), gözetlemek (case, case the joint, espy, eye, keep cave, observe, peek, peep, pry, pry about, pry into, spy on, spy on smb., spy out, spy upon, stand over, watch), casusluk etmek, casus (beagle, emissary, gumshoe, infiltrator, intelligencer, spook), ajan (agent, courier, gumshoe, infiltrator, intelligencer, secret agent, spook). (various references)

Turkmen 

yюyklamak (peep (squeak)), jyklamak (peep at), iзaly (traitor). (various references)

Ukrainian

розглядати (consider, examine, review, rummage, sit, sit on, sit over, survey, treat), шпигун (bull, emissary, fink, nark, nose, overlooker, shadow), вистежувати (dog, nose, nose after, sleuth, snoop, spoor, spy out, trail), наглядач (censor, gangsman, gaoler, inspector, jailer, nigger-driver, overlooker, overman, overseer, reeve, searcher, superintendent, supervisor, taskmaster, warden, watchdog), займатися шпигунством, лазутчик, підглядати (keek). (various references)

Welsh

sbio, ysbi%wr, ysbi%o (look), fforio (explore, scout). (various references)

kurum. (various references)

aucupe, aucupes, circumspector, circumspectores, curiose, curiosus, exploratores, exploratorum, otacustes, speculator, speculatore, speculatorem, speculatores, speculatoris, speculatorum. (various references)

espier, espion. (various references)

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Derivations

Words beginning with "spy": spyglass, spyglasses, spying, spymaster, spymasters. (additional references)

Words ending with "spy": counterspy, crispy, espy, raspy, superspy, waspy, wispy. (additional references)

Words containing "spy": espying. (additional references)

Misspellings

"Spy" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: eppy, Espc, Esphyr, fspi, ispy, Npy, opy, Ppy, psb, psy, py, qpi, qsy, sapey, scy, shply, sipi, smy, sophy, spe, spey, spf, sph, sphy, sphyg, spi, spie, spig, spiq, spix, spiz, spl, spp, spr, spt, spw, spyn, spyx, supi, suy, svp, swy, sxy, sy, syp, syy, tpy, wpy. (additional references)

Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits.

Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams

+1 letter: espy, gyps, hyps, pays, posy, pyas, pyes, spay, spry, syph, yaps, yips, yups.

+2 letters: gipsy, gypsy, hypes, hypos, palsy, pansy, pasty, patsy, pesky, pesty, plays, ploys, poesy, polys, popsy, potsy, prays, preys, prosy, psych, pursy, pushy, pyins, pyres, pyxes, pyxis, raspy, sappy, seepy, sepoy, slype, soapy, sophy, soppy, soupy, spacy, spays, spicy, spiky, spiny, spiry, splay, spray, spumy, sylph, syphs, syrup, sysop, tipsy, types, typos, typps, waspy, wispy, yaups, yawps, yelps, yipes.