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Spying is a like a game of chess: Sometimes you have to withdraw, sometimes you have to sacrifice one of your pieces to win - preferably a knight rather than a king or queen.
John Rhys-Davies

Meaning of "spying" in the English dictionary

Dictionary
DICTIONARY
section

PRONUNCIATION OF SPYING

spying  [ˈspaɪɪŋ] play
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GRAMMATICAL CATEGORY OF SPYING

noun
adjective
verb
adverb
pronoun
preposition
conjunction
determiner
exclamation
Spying is a noun.
A noun is a type of word the meaning of which determines reality. Nouns provide the names for all things: people, objects, sensations, feelings, etc.

WHAT DOES SPYING MEAN IN ENGLISH?

spying

Espionage

Espionage or spying involves a government or individual obtaining information considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage is inherently clandestine, as it is taken for granted that it is unwelcome and in many cases illegal and punishable by law. It is a subset of "intelligence gathering", which otherwise may be conducted from public sources and using perfectly legal and ethical means. It is crucial to distinguish espionage from "intelligence" gathering, as the latter does not necessarily involve espionage, but often collates open-source information. Espionage is often part of an institutional effort by a government or commercial concern. However, the term is generally associated with state spying on potential or actual enemies primarily for military purposes. Spying involving corporations is known as industrial espionage. One of the most effective ways to gather data and information about the enemy is by infiltrating the enemy's ranks. This is the job of the spy. Spies can bring back all sorts of information concerning the size and strength of an enemy army.

Definition of spying in the English dictionary

The definition of spying in the dictionary is the activity of trying to obtain secret information from rival countries, organizations, companies, etc.

WORDS THAT RHYME WITH SPYING


buying
ˈbaɪɪŋ
crying
ˈkraɪɪŋ
drying
ˈdraɪɪŋ
dyeing
ˈdaɪɪŋ
dying
ˈdaɪɪŋ
flying
ˈflaɪɪŋ
frying
ˈfraɪɪŋ
gratifying
ˈɡrætɪˌfaɪɪŋ
home-buying
ˈhəʊmˌbaɪɪŋ
horrifying
ˈhɒrɪˌfaɪɪŋ
lying
ˈlaɪɪŋ
multiplying
ˈmʌltɪplaɪɪŋ
outlying
ˈaʊtˌlaɪɪŋ
overlying
ˌəʊvəˈlaɪɪŋ
qualifying
ˈkwɒlɪfaɪɪŋ
satisfying
ˈsætɪsfaɪɪŋ
terrifying
ˈtɛrɪˌfaɪɪŋ
trying
ˈtraɪɪŋ
underlying
ˌʌndəˈlaɪɪŋ
unifying
ˈjuːnɪfaɪɪŋ

WORDS THAT BEGIN LIKE SPYING

sputter
sputterer
sputteringly
sputtery
sputum
spy
spy camera
spy out
spy plane
spy ring
spy satellite
spy ship
Spy Wednesday
spy-in-the-sky
spycatcher
spyglass
spyhole
spying charge
spymaster
spyware

WORDS THAT END LIKE SPYING

accompanying
annoying
bullying
copying
go without saying
hurrying
laying
lobbying
magnifying
paying
playing
praying
role playing
role-playing
saying
surveying
that goes without saying
tying
varying
worrying

Synonyms and antonyms of spying in the English dictionary of synonyms

SYNONYMS

SYNONYMS OF «SPYING»

The following words have a similar or identical meaning as «spying» and belong to the same grammatical category.
synonyms of spying

Translation of «spying» into 25 languages

TRANSLATOR
online translator

TRANSLATION OF SPYING

Find out the translation of spying to 25 languages with our English multilingual translator.
The translations of spying from English to other languages presented in this section have been obtained through automatic statistical translation; where the essential translation unit is the word «spying» in English.

Translator English - Chinese

密探
1,325 millions of speakers

Translator English - Spanish

espionaje
570 millions of speakers

English

spying
510 millions of speakers

Translator English - Hindi

जासूसी
380 millions of speakers
ar

Translator English - Arabic

تـَجَسُّسَ
280 millions of speakers

Translator English - Russian

шпионаж
278 millions of speakers

Translator English - Portuguese

espionagem
270 millions of speakers

Translator English - Bengali

গোয়েন্দাগিরি
260 millions of speakers

Translator English - French

espionnage
220 millions of speakers

Translator English - Malay

Mengintip
190 millions of speakers

Translator English - German

Spionieren
180 millions of speakers

Translator English - Japanese

スパイ行為
130 millions of speakers

Translator English - Korean

정탐하기
85 millions of speakers

Translator English - Javanese

Spying
85 millions of speakers
vi

Translator English - Vietnamese

sự bí mật theo dõi
80 millions of speakers

Translator English - Tamil

உளவு
75 millions of speakers

Translator English - Marathi

जासूसी
75 millions of speakers

Translator English - Turkish

casusluk
70 millions of speakers

Translator English - Italian

spionaggio
65 millions of speakers

Translator English - Polish

szpiegostwo
50 millions of speakers

Translator English - Ukrainian

шпигунство
40 millions of speakers

Translator English - Romanian

spionaj
30 millions of speakers
el

Translator English - Greek

κατασκοπεία
15 millions of speakers
af

Translator English - Afrikaans

spioenasie
14 millions of speakers
sv

Translator English - Swedish

spionage
10 millions of speakers
no

Translator English - Norwegian

spionasje
5 millions of speakers

Trends of use of spying

TRENDS

TENDENCIES OF USE OF THE TERM «SPYING»

The term «spying» is very widely used and occupies the 19.476 position in our list of most widely used terms in the English dictionary.
0
100%
FREQUENCY
Very widely used
91
/100
The map shown above gives the frequency of use of the term «spying» in the different countries.
Principal search tendencies and common uses of spying
List of principal searches undertaken by users to access our English online dictionary and most widely used expressions with the word «spying».

FREQUENCY OF USE OF THE TERM «SPYING» OVER TIME

The graph expresses the annual evolution of the frequency of use of the word «spying» during the past 500 years. Its implementation is based on analysing how often the term «spying» appears in digitalised printed sources in English between the year 1500 and the present day.

Examples of use in the English literature, quotes and news about spying

EXAMPLES

10 QUOTES WITH «SPYING»

Famous quotes and sentences with the word spying.
1
Odette Annable
I used to try to pick locks because I grew up on my grandparents' farm and I started my own little spy club. I would go around the farm and try to break into the shed and try spying on my grandpa. It was ridiculous.
2
Julian Assange
We have some material on spying by a major government on the tech industry. Industrial espionage.
3
Glenn Greenwald
The Obama administration says we only destroy the privacy of non-Americans. That is not true. The government is spying on Americans.
4
Angela Merkel
Spying among friends is never acceptable.
5
Melita Norwood
In general, I do not agree with spying against one's country.
6
Sarah Parcak
Archaeologists gave the military the idea to use aerial photographs for spying and field survey. We are fortunate that the spatial and spectral resolutions of the imagery available to us are so broadly useful for archaeology.
7
Witold Pilecki
I carried out my orders until arrested. I had no sense that I was spying, and I ask that this be taken into account in deciding my verdict.
8
Howard Rheingold
We are moving rapidly into a world in which the spying machinery is built into every object we encounter.
9
John Rhys-Davies
Spying is a like a game of chess: Sometimes you have to withdraw, sometimes you have to sacrifice one of your pieces to win - preferably a knight rather than a king or queen.
10
David O. Russell
The whole trick is to make it feel like you're spying on real people's lives as they get through the day. When I'm writing, I have to trick myself as a writer. If I consciously say, 'I'm writing,' I feel all this pressure and somehow it doesn't feel as real as when it doesn't seem to count as much.

10 ENGLISH BOOKS RELATING TO «SPYING»

Discover the use of spying in the following bibliographical selection. Books relating to spying and brief extracts from same to provide context of its use in English literature.
1
Fair Play: The Moral Dilemmas of Spying
In the high-stakes world of spying, do the ends justify the means?
James M. Olson, 2006
2
Economic Espionage and Industrial Spying
This 2005 book provides an analytic overview and assessment of the changing nature of crime in the burgeoning information society.
Hedieh Nasheri, 2005
3
Spying Blind: The CIA, the FBI, and the Origins of 9/11
In this pathbreaking book, Amy Zegart provides the first scholarly examination of the intelligence failures that preceded September 11.
Amy B. Zegart, 2009
4
Spying Without Spies: Origins of America's Secret Nuclear ...
This is the first description of the formation of America's nulcear surveillance system.
Charles A. Ziegler, 1995
5
Junie B. Jones and Some Sneaky Peeky Spying (Junie B. Jones)
" Time Magazine: "Junie B. Jones is a feisty six-year-old with an endearing penchant for honesty." From the Trade Paperback edition.
Barbara Park, 2010
6
Spying with Maps: Surveillance Technologies and the Future ...
In Spying with Maps, the "mapmatician" Mark Monmonier looks at the increased use of geographic data, satellite imagery, and location tracking across a wide range of fields such as military intelligence, law enforcement, market research, and ...
Mark Monmonier, 2004
7
Cyber Spying Tracking Your Family's (Sometimes) Secret ...
This book shows everyday computer users how to become cyber-sleuths.
Eric Cole, Michael Nordfelt, Sandra Ring, 2005
8
Ethics of Spying: A Reader for the Intelligence Professional
Ethics of Spying: A Reader for the Intelligence Professional, Volume 2 seeks to define an intelligence professional while utilizing various theoretical and practical perspectives.
Jan Goldman, 2010
9
Spying on the Nuclear Bear: Anglo-American Intelligence and ...
Based on previously unavailable sources, this book reveals the Anglo-American intelligence effort to penetrate the most secret domain of the Soviet government—its nuclear weapons program.
Michael S. Goodman, 2007
10
Enemies Within: Inside the NYPD's Secret Spying Unit and bin ...
In Enemies Within, Matt Apuzzo and Adam Goldman lay bare the complex and often contradictory state of counterterrorism and intelligence in America through the pursuit of Najibullah Zazi, a terrorist bomber who trained under one of bin ...
Matt Apuzzo, Adam Goldman, 2013

10 NEWS ITEMS WHICH INCLUDE THE TERM «SPYING»

Find out what the national and international press are talking about and how the term spying is used in the context of the following news items.
1
Germany Warns US About Spying on Its Officials
Spying is a particularly sensitive issue here, in part because of the country's history of state surveillance under the Nazi and East German Communist regimes. «Wall Street Journal, Jul 15»
2
Brazil, US look to move past spying
Washington (CNN) Two years after Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff scrapped a state visit to the White House, she and President Barack Obama are trying to ... «CNN, Jun 15»
3
France summons US ambassador over 'unacceptable' spying
The revelation that the US National Security Agency (NSA) had spied on three ... Afterwards, Valls told MPs the “systematic and continued” spying on foreign ... «The Guardian, Jun 15»
4
Germany drops probe into US spying on Merkel
Washington (CNN) Germany's Federal Prosecutor's Office has dropped a probe into allegations that the National Security Agency had bugged the phone of ... «CNN, Jun 15»
5
Don't Be Fooled, Germany's Outrage at US Spying Is Just for Show
I no longer have to help manage the messy controversies in which the CIA seems to be constantly embroiled, but I also wonder whether all the spy “flaps” I read ... «TIME, Jul 14»
6
US Spying on Germany Unacceptable, Says Merkel
On Thursday officials in Washington declined to comment about Germany's action or the allegations of U.S. spying, while repeating that they valued their ... «Wall Street Journal, Jul 14»
7
Spying Case Left Obama in Dark, US Officials Say
While Ms. Merkel chose not to raise the issue during the call, the fact that the president was kept in the dark about the blown spying operation at a particularly ... «New York Times, Jul 14»
8
Germany arrests man suspected of spying for US
The BBC's Steve Evans in Berlin says the new allegation of American spying on an ally may make it harder for the US to get German help in its efforts to oppose ... «BBC News, Jul 14»
9
Sinosphere | Beijing Levels New Attack at US Cyber-Spying
A week after United States prosecutors indicted five People's Liberation Army officers on charges of cyber-theft, a Chinese government agency has issued its ... «New York Times, May 14»
10
Obama talks spying with Facebook's Zuckerberg, Google's Schmidt
Zuckerberg and Obama "had an honest talk about government intrusion on the Internet," says Facebook -- just days after the CEO posted an indignant statement ... «CNET, Mar 14»

REFERENCE
« EDUCALINGO. Spying [online]. Available <https://educalingo.com/en/dic-en/spying>. Apr 2024 ».
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