/ spaɪ; NAmE / noun , verb
■ noun
( pl. -ies ) a person who tries to get secret information about another country, organization, or person, especially sb who is employed by a government or the police :
He was denounced as a foreign spy.
a police spy
a spy plane / satellite (= used to watch the activities of the enemy)
Video spy cameras are being used in public places.
■ verb ( spies , spy·ing , spied , spied )
1.
[ v ] to collect secret information about another country, organization or person :
He spied for his government for more than ten years.
2.
[ vn ] ( literary or formal ) to suddenly see or notice sb/sth :
In the distance we spied the Pacific for the first time.
•
IDIOMS
- spy out the land
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PHRASAL VERBS
- spy on sb/sth
- spy sth out
••
WORD ORIGIN
Middle English : shortening of Old French espie espying, espier espy, of Germanic origin, from an Indo-European root shared by Latin specere behold, look.