spy
To act as a spyTo act as a spy.
» I know Tom is a spy.
Ich weiß, dass Tom ein Spion ist.
Я знаю, что Том — шпион.
Я знаю, що Том — шпигун.
Meaning
4 senses(intransitive)To act as a spy.
During the Cold War, Russia and America would each spy on each other for recon.
ausspionieren
шпио́нитьšpiónitʹ, следи́тьsledítʹ
шпигуватиšpyhuvaty
(transitive)To spot; to catch sight of; to espy.
I think I can spy that hot guy coming over here.
erspähen
catch sight of
(intransitive)To search narrowly; to scrutinize.
(transitive)To explore; to see; to view; inspect and examine secretly, as a country.
Examples
314 sentencesI know Tom is a spy.
Я знаю, що Том — шпигун.
ruЯ знаю, что Том — шпион.
deIch weiß, dass Tom ein Spion ist.
I suspect that Tom is a spy.
Підозрюю, що Том — шпигун.
ruЯ подозреваю, что Том — шпион.
I know that Tom is a spy.
Я знаю, що Том — шпигун.
ruЯ знаю, что Том — шпион.
deIch weiß, dass Tom ein Spion ist.
Do you really think Tom is a spy?
Ти й насправді думаєш, що Том шпигун?
ruВы действительно считаете Тома шпионом?
You would make an excellent spy.
Із тебе вийшов би відмінний шпигун.
ruИз тебя бы вышел отличный шпион.
Translations
9 languagesBy meaning 1
By meaning 1
By meaning 2
Origin
From Middle English spien, aphetic variant of earlier espien (“to espy”), from Old FrenchFrom 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”).
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
spies, spying, spied, spiedPhrasal verbs
2 phrasal verbsSynonyms
7 synonymsWord family
11 related wordsLessons for this word
3 lessons- A1Present simple — Because it is a verb
- A1Past simple, regular verbs — Because of its past form
- A2Present perfect: introduction — Because of its past participle
Collocations
5 patterns- is a spy
- been spying on
- being a spy
- to spy on
- has been spying