spy

§English

§Etymology

From Middle English spien, aphetic variant of earlier espien (“to espy”), from Old French espier (“to spy”), from Frankish *spehōn (“to spy”), from Proto-Germanic *spehōną (“to see, look”), from Proto-Indo-European *speḱ- (“to look”). Akin to German spähen (“to spy”), Dutch spieden (“to spy”).

§Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /spaɪ/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -aɪ

§Noun

spy (plural spies)

1. A person who secretly watches and examines the actions of other individuals or organizations and gathers information on them (usually to gain an advantage).
   • 2013 June 29, “Travels and travails”, The Economist, volume 407, number 8842, page 55: 

     Even without hovering drones, a lurking assassin, a thumping score and a denouement, the real-life story of Edward Snowden, a rogue spy on the run, could be straight out of the cinema. But, as with Hollywood, the subplots and exotic locations may distract from the real message: America’s discomfort and its foes’ glee.

§Translations

person who secretly watches

• Abkhaz: please add this translation if you can
• Afrikaans: spioen
• Arabic: جاسوس m (jāsūs)
• Armenian: լրտես (lrtes)
• Avar: please add this translation if you can
• Bulgarian: шпионин (bg) (shpionin)
• Catalan: espia (ca) f
• Chechen: please add this translation if you can
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 間諜 (zh), 间谍 (zh) (jiàndié)

• Czech: vyzvědač m, špión m
• Dutch: spion (nl) m, spionne f
• Esperanto: spiono (eo)
• Estonian: spioon
• Faroese: njósnari m
• Finnish: vakooja (fi), vakoilija (fi)
• French: espion (fr) m, espionne (fr) f
• Georgian: ჯაშუში (ǰašuši)
• German: Spion (de) m, Spionin f
• Greek: κατάσκοπος (el) m (katáskopos)
• Hebrew: מרגל m (meragel), מרגלת f (meragelet)
• Hindi: जासूस m (jāsūs)
• Hungarian: kém (hu), spion (hu)
• Icelandic: njósnari m
• Indonesian: mata-mata (id)
• Irish: spiaire m
• Italian: spia (it) f
• Japanese: 間諜 (ja) (かんちょう, kanchō), スパイ (ja) (supai), 密使 (mishi)
• Jèrriais: êpieux m, espion m
• Khmer: ចារបុរស (caa bo’rɑh)
• Korean: 간첩 (ko) (gancheop) (間諜 (ko)), 스파이 (ko) (seupai)
• Kurdish: sîxur (ku), casûs (ku), diznêr (ku), xefnêr (ku), şofar (ku), spiyon (ku)
• Latvian: spiegs m, spiedze f

• Macedonian: шпион m (špíon)
• Malay: pengintip
• Maori: tūtei, pūrahorua, kaitūtei
• Mongolian: please add this translation if you can
• Navajo: naalchiʼí
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: spion m

  Nynorsk: spion m

• Ossetian: шпион (špion), дзырдхӕссӕг (ʒyrdxæssæg)
• Persian: جاسوس (fa) (jâsus), اپیشه (fa) (apiše)
• Polish: szpieg (pl) m
• Portuguese: espião (pt) m
• Romanian: please add this translation if you can
• Russian: шпион (ru) m (špión), шпионка (ru) f (špiónka), агент (ru) m (agént)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: шпијун m, шпијунка f, ухода m

  Roman: špìjūn m, špìjūnka f, ùhoda m

• Slovak: sliedič m
• Sotho: tlhwela
• Spanish: espía (es) m, chivato (es) m
• Swahili: majasusi (sw)
• Swedish: spion (sv) c
• Telugu: వేగు (te) (vēgu), గూఢచారి (gūḍhacāri)
• Thai: สายลับ (săai láp)
• Tibetan: སོ་པ (so pa)
• Turkish: ajan (tr), casus (tr)
• Tuvan: please add this translation if you can
• Ukrainian: шпигун m (špyhún)
• Urdu: جاسوس m (jāsūs)
• Vietnamese: gián điệp (vi) (間諜)
• Volapük: (♂♀) spionan (vo), (♂) hispionan, (♀) jispionan
• Yiddish: please add this translation if you can

§Derived terms

• spy ring

§Verb

spy (third-person singular simple present spies, present participle spying, simple past and past participle spied)

1. (intransitive) To act as a spy.

   During the Cold War, Russia and America would each spy on each other for recon.

2. (transitive) To spot; to catch sight of.

   I think I can spy that hot guy coming over here.

   • Jonathan Swift

     One in reading, skipped over all sentences where he spied a note of admiration.

   • Latimer

     Look about with your eyes; spy what things are to be reformed in the church of England.

3. (intransitive) To search narrowly; to scrutinize.
   • Shakespeare

     It is my nature's plague / To spy into abuses.

4. (transitive) To explore; to view; inspect and examine secretly, as a country.
   • Bible, Numbers xxi. 32

     Moses sent to spy Jaazer, and they took the villages thereof.

§Translations

to act as a spy

• Afrikaans: spioeneer
• Catalan: espiar (ca)
• Chinese: 暗中偵察, 暗中侦察 (ànzhōng zhānchá)
• Czech: špehovat, slídit
• Dutch: spioneren (nl), bespieden (nl)
• Esperanto: spioni
• Finnish: vakoilla
• French: espionner (fr)
• German: ausspionieren (de)
• Greek: κατασκοπεύσει (el) (kataskopéfsei)
• Hungarian: kémkedik (hu)
• Icelandic: njósna
• Italian: spiare
• Latin: speculor
• Latvian: spiegot
• Macedonian: шпионира (špioníra)

• Malay: intip
• Maori: tūtei
• Norwegian: spionere
• Portuguese: espiar (pt), espionar
• Quechua: chapatiyay
• Russian: шпионить (ru) (špiónit’), следить (ru) (sledít’)
• Serbo-Croatian: шпијунирати, уходити

  Roman: špijunírati, uhòditi

• Sotho: hlwela
• Spanish: espiar (es)
• Swahili: majasusi (sw)
• Swedish: spionera (sv)
• Turkish: casusluk yapmak, ajanlık yapmak
• Tuvan: шивишкиннээр (šiviškinneer)
• Volapük: spionön (vo)

to spot at a distance

• Icelandic: koma auga á
• Italian: spiare
• Latin: speculor

• Latvian: ieraudzīt, saskatīt
• Norwegian: få øye på
• Swahili: majasusi (sw)

§Derived terms

• spy on

§Related terms

• spyglass
• spyware

§See also

• Wikipedia article on spies

§Anagrams

• SYP

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§Norwegian Bokmål

§Etymology

From Old Norse spýja, from Proto-Germanic *spīwaną, from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ptyēw- (“to spit, vomit”). Compare Swedish and Danish spy, Icelandic spýja, English spew, Dutch spuwen, German speien.

§Noun

spy n (definite singular spyet) (uncountable)

1. barf (US), vomit, spew

§Verb

spy (present tense spyr, simple past spydde, past participle spydd)

1. to barf (US), throw up, vomit, spew (also figurative)

§Synonyms

• kaste opp

§References

• “spy” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

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§Swedish

§Etymology

From Old Norse spýja, from Proto-Germanic *spīwaną, from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ptyēw- (“to spit, vomit”). Compare Norwegian and Danish spy, Icelandic spýja, English spew, Dutch spuwen, German speien.

§Verb

spy

1. to throw up, to vomit

§Conjugation

Conjugation of spy

	Active	Passive
Infinitive	spy	—
Present tense	spyr	—
Past tense	spydde	—
Supine	spytt	—
Imperative	spy	—
Present participle	spyende
Past participle	spydd

§Synonyms

• kräkas

§Related terms

• spya
• spyboll