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”, in 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.

Synonyms

• intelligencer
• Thesaurus:spy

Translations

person who secretly watches

• Abkhaz: please add this translation if you can
• Afrikaans: spioen
• Albanian: spiun (sq) m
• Arabic: جَاسُوس‎‎ m (jāsūs), جَاسُوسَة‎‎ f (jāsūsa)
• Armenian: լրտես (hy) (lrtes)
• Assamese: চোৰাংচোৱা (süraṅsüa)
• Avar: жасус (žasus)
• Azerbaijani: casus (az)
• Belarusian: шпіён m (špijón)
• Bulgarian: шпио́нин (bg) m (špiónin)
• Burmese: သူလျှို (suhlyui)
• 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 (cs) m
• Danish: spion c
• Dutch: spion (nl) m, spionne (nl) f
• Esperanto: spiono (eo)
• Estonian: spioon
• Faroese: njósnari m
• Finnish: vakooja (fi), vakoilija (fi)
• French: espion (fr) m, espionne (fr) f
• Galician: espía m, f
• Georgian: ჯაშუში (ǯašuši), შპიონი (šṗioni), მოთვალთვალე (motvaltvale), მსტოვარი (msṭovari)
• German: Spion (de) m, Spionin (de) f
• Greek: κατάσκοπος (el) m (katáskopos)

  Ancient Greek: κατάσκοπος m (katáskopos)

• Hebrew: מְרַגֵל‎‎ (he) m (meragel), מרגלת‎‎ f (meragelet)
• Hindi: जासूस (hi) m (jāsūs)
• Hungarian: kém (hu), spion (hu)
• Icelandic: njósnari m
• Indonesian: mata-mata (id)
• Irish: spiaire m, brathadóir m
• Italian: spia (it) f
• Japanese: 間諜 (ja) (かんちょう, kanchō), スパイ (ja) (supai), 密使 (mishi)
• Kazakh: шпион (şpïon), тыңшы (tıñşı)
• Khmer: ចារបុរស (caa borɑh)
• Korean: 간첩 (ko) (gancheop) (間諜 (ko)), 스파이 (ko) (seupai)
• Kurdish: sîxur (ku), casûs (ku), diznêr (ku), xefnêr (ku), şofar (ku), spiyon (ku)
• Kyrgyz: шпион (ky) (şpion), тыңчы (ky) (tıñçı)
• Lao: ໃສ້ເສິກ (sai sœk), ເຊີຽ (sœ̄i), ຈາລະບຸລຸດ (chā la bu lut), ນັກສືບ (nak sư̄p)
• Latin: ōtacustēs m

• Latvian: spiegs m, spiedze f
• Lithuanian: šnipas m
• Macedonian: шпи́он m (špíon)
• Malagasy: mitsikilo (mg)
• Malay: pengintip
• Maori: tūtei, pūrahorua, kaitūtei
• Mongolian: тагнуул (mn) (tagnuul)
• Navajo: naalchiʼí
• Norman: êpieux m, espion m
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: spion m

  Nynorsk: spion m

• Ossetian: шпион (špion), дзырдхӕссӕг (ʒyrdxæssæg)
• Persian: جاسوس‎‎ (fa) (jâsus)
• Polish: szpieg (pl) m, szpicel (pl) m
• Portuguese: espião (pt) m
• Romanian: spion (ro) m, spioană (ro) f
• Russian: шпио́н (ru) m (špión), шпио́нка (ru) f (špiónka), аге́нт (ru) m (agént), шпик (ru) m (špik) (colloquial)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: шпијун m, шпијунка f, ухода m

  Roman: špìjūn (sh) m, špìjūnka (sh) f, ùhoda (sh) m

• Slovak: sliedič m
• Slovene: vohun (sl) m, vohunka f
• Sotho: tlhwela
• Spanish: espía (es) m, chivato (es) m
• Swahili: jasusi (sw) class 5/6, mpelelezi (sw) class 1/2
• Swedish: spion (sv) c
• Tagalog: batyaw
• Tajik: ҷосус (josus)
• Telugu: వేగు (te) (vēgu), గూఢచారి (te) (gūḍhacāri)
• Thai: สายลับ (sǎai-láp)
• Tibetan: སོ་པ (so pa)
• Turkish: ajan (tr), casus (tr)
• Turkmen: içaly
• Tuvan: please add this translation if you can
• Ukrainian: шпигу́н m (špyhún)
• Urdu: جاسوس‎‎ m (jāsūs)
• Uyghur: جاسۇس‎‎ (jasus)
• Uzbek: josus (uz), shpion (uz)
• Vietnamese: gián điệp (vi) (間諜)
• Volapük: (♂♀) spionan (vo), (♂) hispionan, (♀) jispionan
• Yiddish: שפּיאָן‎‎ m (shpyon)
• Zazaki: casus (♂♀)

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 see; 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
• Armenian: լրտեսել (hy) (lrtesel)
• Catalan: espiar (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 暗中偵察, 暗中侦察 (ànzhōng zhānchá)

• Czech: špehovat, slídit
• Dutch: spioneren (nl), bespieden (nl)
• Esperanto: spioni
• Finnish: vakoilla (fi)
• French: espionner (fr)
• Georgian: ჯაშუშობა (ǯašušoba), შპიონაჟი (šṗionaži), თვალთვალი (tvaltvali), დაზვერვა (dazverva), მიკვლევა (miḳvleva), კვალის მიგნება (ḳvalis migneba)
• German: ausspionieren (de)
• Greek: κατασκοπεύω (el) (kataskopévo)
• Hungarian: kémkedik (hu)
• Icelandic: njósna
• Indonesian: memata-matai
• Italian: spiare (it)
• Latin: speculor
• Latvian: spiegot
• Macedonian: шпионира (špioníra)

• Malay: intip
• Maori: tūtei
• Norwegian: spionere
• Polish: szpiegować (pl)
• Portuguese: espiar (pt), espionar
• Quechua: chapatiyay
• Romanian: spiona (ro)
• Russian: шпио́нить (ru) (špiónitʹ), следи́ть (ru) (sledítʹ)
• Serbo-Croatian: шпијунирати, уходити

  Roman: špijunírati (sh), uhòditi (sh)

• Sotho: hlwela
• Spanish: espiar (es)
• Swahili: majasusi (sw)
• Swedish: spionera (sv)
• Turkish: casusluk yapmak, ajanlık yapmak
• Tuvan: шивишкиннээр (šïvïškïnnäär)
• Volapük: spionön (vo)
• Welsh: sbio (cy)
• Zazaki: casusin

to spot at a distance

• Icelandic: koma auga á
• Italian: spiare (it)
• Latin: speculor
• Latvian: ieraudzīt, saskatīt

• Norwegian: få øye på
• Polish: dostrzec (pl) pf
• Swahili: majasusi (sw)

Derived terms

• spy on
• spyhop

Related terms

• spyglass
• spyware

See also

• Wikipedia article on spies

Descendants

• Japanese: スパイ (supai)
• Korean: 스파이 (seupai)

Anagrams

• SYP, YPs

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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 (weak)

	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