spy 1 of 2

noun

Definition of spynext
as in operative
a person who tries secretly to obtain information for one country in the territory of another usually unfriendly country the government spy risked his life every day in the fight against global terrorism

Synonyms & Similar Words

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spy

2 of 2

verb

ˈspī How to pronounce spy (audio)
as in to spot
to make note of (something) through the use of one's eyes I spy a motel off in the distance, so let's spend the night there

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of spy
Noun
He was filled with ambition to see more of the country, write a spy thriller and literally climb more hills. — Andrea Javor, Los Angeles Times, 28 Aug. 2026 Elordi, for his part, is probably too tall to play a spy, and Dickinson is more invested in his filmmaking career. — Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 28 Aug. 2026
Verb
Why does English football view spying as a heinous crime while other countries openly admit to using drones to study upcoming opponents? — Jacob Tanswell, New York Times, 14 Aug. 2026 Chenal could stuff the run, spy the quarterback and rush the passer in key situations while also logging snaps in kick return, punt return, punt coverage and field-goal block. — Blair Kerkhoff, Kansas City Star, 9 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for spy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spy
  1. operative
  2. spot
  3. agent
  4. eye
  5. undercover
  6. notice
  7. mole
  8. see
Noun
  • Strategy and comms chief Nick Rathod, a seasoned political operative, served as Deputy Director in the Obama White House and a Special Assistant to the President.
    — Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 21 Aug. 2026
  • The complaint alleges that Bowie, who converted to Islam five years ago and became radicalized online, spent a month communicating with an ISIS facilitator who was actually an undercover operative working with the FBI.
    — Adam England, PEOPLE, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of operative
Verb
  • Roman will be able to use its coronagraph like a shield against harsh starlight to spot planets that are otherwise difficult to see around other stars and identify them.
    — Ashley Strickland, CNN Money, 30 Aug. 2026
  • With new digital imaging techniques, astronomers were able to spot a new and tiny world orbiting 4 billion miles beyond Neptune.
    — Tariq Malik, Space.com, 30 Aug. 2026
Definition of spot
Noun
  • Rogue OpenAI agents’ unprecedented coordination during the Hugging Face attack significantly increases the risk of AI escaping human control, analysts said, days after investigators released a bombshell report into the incident.
    — Brendan Ruberry, semafor.com, 30 Aug. 2026
  • This was followed by the creation of the Special Operations Executive (SOE) on July 22 to handle espionage and resistance agents, and the first raids were already being carried out.
    — David Szondy August 30, New Atlas, 30 Aug. 2026
Definition of agent
Verb
  • Last year, Killian was on a list with other campuses that appear to be eyed for closure.
    — Austin Horn August 29, Miami Herald, 29 Aug. 2026
  • Production is being eyed for November, filming primarily in the Tampa/Clearwater area, where the original Hooters restaurant opened in 1983.
    — Anthony D'Alessandro, Deadline, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of eye
Noun
  • Federal prosecutors accused Heidi Beirich, an expert on political extremism and a former director of the nonprofit’s intelligence project, of overseeing payments to informants working undercover in a variety of hate groups.
    — Jeremy Roebuck, Washington Post, 12 Aug. 2026
  • Goode and the Safdies began filming interviews with Tabraue and Crutchfield in 2014, with Josh sporting spy-camera glasses to try to capture Tabraue undercover, but the footage looked like crap.
    — Marlow Stern, Variety, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of undercover
Verb
  • The scholar of religion Friedrich Max Müller (1823–1900) noticed that many Vedic hymns praise different deities using the same superlatives and ascribe to them the same mythological feats.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 28 Aug. 2026
  • These wild swings in the numbers came while residents here didn’t notice any change to the slow but steady arrival of newcomers in dilapidated coaches.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of notice
Noun
  • Following the devastating Russian cyberattack of Season 1, the GCHQ team discovers evidence of a mole while a new Chinese cyber threat begins targeting the British government.
    — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2026
  • This is partly what propels his mole demi-glace, a convergence of inspirations realized in a duck and smoked chicken stock sharpened by the foundational components of mole.
    — Jenn Harris, Los Angeles Times, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of mole
Verb
  • Institutional investors still seem to see growth opportunities, even if some sovereign wealth funds show signs of potential pullbacks.
    — Jacob Feldman, Sportico.com, 27 Aug. 2026
  • The expansion will see Amazon Web Services (AWS) deploy 2 million additional Nvidia graphics processing units (GPUs) in fiscal years 2027 and 2028.
    — Zev Fima, CNBC, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of see

Browse Nearby Words

sputum
spy
spying
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Cite this Entry

“Spy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spy. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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