Definitions
secretly collect sensitive or classified information; engage in espionage
Word origin
From 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”).
Used in a sentence
“The dead leap at the throat, destroy The meaning of the day; dark forms Have scaled your walls, and spies betray Old secrets to amorphous swarms.”
“During the Cold War, Russia and America would each spy on each other for recon.”
“I think I can spy that hot guy coming over here.”
Source: Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0
Used as a crossword answer1 curated clues
01“Secret agent”3 letters
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