spied; spying
1
: to watch secretly usually for hostile purposes
There is a story that Washington … sat with his glass, spying the movements across the water in Boston.—
Horace E. Scudder
Horace E. Scudder2
: to catch sight of : see
spied her friends in the crowd
3
: to search or look for intensively
—usually used with out
… spy out places fit for vending … goods …—Samuel Eliot Morison
Samuel Eliot Morison1
: to observe or search for something : look
2
: to watch secretly as a spy
spying for the government
—often used with onspying on a rival company
plural spies
1
: one that spies:
a
: one who keeps secret watch on a person or thing to obtain information
b
: a person employed by one nation to secretly convey classified information of strategic importance to another nation
also
: a person who conveys the trade secrets of one company to another
2
: an act of spying
Examples of spy in a Sentence
Verb
They were accused of spying for a foreign government.
I spy a motel off in the distance, so let's spend the night there.
Noun
He was a spy for the CIA.
My coworker is a spy for the boss.
Recent Examples on the Web
Ryan Morik, FOXNews.com, 29 Jan. 2026
In October, a resident of View Park-Windsor Hills, an unincorporated neighborhood in West Los Angeles, spied a man descending into a manhole and called police.
—Karen Garcia, Los Angeles Times, 28 Jan. 2026
Mike Barnes, HollywoodReporter, 29 Jan. 2026
Fans might recognize her from the streamer's spooky period drama 1899 (2022) or its hit spy thriller Black Doves (2024–present).
—Allison Degrushe, Entertainment Weekly, 29 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for spy
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Verb
The 2007 spying scandal cost the team a first-round pick and $250,000, while Belichick was fined $500,000.
—Ryan Morik, FOXNews.com, 29 Jan. 2026
In October, a resident of View Park-Windsor Hills, an unincorporated neighborhood in West Los Angeles, spied a man descending into a manhole and called police.
—Karen Garcia, Los Angeles Times, 28 Jan. 2026
Noun
For the first time, Pixar hired an outside director, Brad Bird, who drew inspiration from spy films and comic books from the 1960s.
—Mike Barnes, HollywoodReporter, 29 Jan. 2026
Fans might recognize her from the streamer's spooky period drama 1899 (2022) or its hit spy thriller Black Doves (2024–present).
—Allison Degrushe, Entertainment Weekly, 29 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for spy
Cite this Entry
“Spy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spy. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
spy
2 of 2 noun
plural spies
1
: one that watches the movement or actions of others especially in secret
2
: a person who tries secretly to obtain information for one country in the territory of another usually unfriendly country
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