Meanings
plural espionages
- countableuncountableThe act or process of learning secret information through clandestine means.
What a freak show! I mean, how often do you meet a wrestling librarian? Yeah, about as often as you meet a high schoolgirl involved in international espionage… Okay, bad example.
2003 June 20, Joseph Purdy, “Totally Switched”, in Totally Spies!, season 2, episode 19, spoken by Alexandra “Alex” (Andrea Taylor as Clover and Katie Leigh), Marathon Media, via Teletoon2 more examples
So intolerable did Heavy Benson's espionage become, that Raynham would have grown depopulated of its womankind had not Adrian interfered, who pointed out to the Baronet what a fearful arm his butler was wielding.
1859, George Meredith, chapter 16, in The Ordeal of Richard Feverel. A History of Father and Son. […], volume (please specify |volume=I to III), London: Chapman and Hall, →OCLCThe results of this investigation to date indicate that there is probable cause to believe that, beginning in 1985 and continuing to the present, ROBERT PHILIP HANSSEN (hereinafter “HANSSEN”), a United States citizen, has conspired […] to commit espionage against the United States on behalf of a foreign government, specifically the Soviet Union or Russia, and has in fact engaged in such espionage.
2001 February, Stefan A. Pluta, “United States of America v. Robert Philip Hanssen: Affidavit in Support of Criminal Complaint, Arrest Warrant and Search Warrants”, in United States District Court, archived from the original on 30 Jun 2025, page 3Synonyms: spying
Synonyms & antonyms
nounThe act or process of learning secret information through clandestine means.
Origin
- Proto-Germanic*spehōną“to spy, peek, peer”
- Frankish*spehōn“to spy”
- Frankish*spehō“spy”
- Old Frenchespion“spy”
- Middle Frenchespionner“to spy”
- Frenchespionnage
- Englishespionage
Recorded since 1793, from French espionnage, from espionner (“to spy”), from Middle French espionner (“to spy”), from espion (“spy”), from Old French espion (“spy”), from Frankish *spehō (“spy”), from Frankish *spehōn (“to spy”), from Proto-Germanic *spehōną (“to spy, peek, peer”). In modern times, the French pronunciation of the s, which had fallen silent since the 13th century, was restored due to the influence of Italian spione (“spy”), and was therefore also adopted by the English. More at spy.
More words from French, Middle French, Old French
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Afrikaans spioenasie
- spioenasieact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Arabic تَجَسُّس, جَاسُوسِيَّة
- تَجَسُّس (tajassus)act of learning secret information through clandestine means
- جَاسُوسِيَّة (jāsūsiyya)act of learning secret information through clandestine means
Basque espioitza
- espioitzaact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Bengali গুপ্তচরবৃত্তি
- গুপ্তচরবৃত্তি (guptocrobritti)act of learning secret information through clandestine means
Bulgarian шпиона́ж
- шпиона́ж (špionáž)act of learning secret information through clandestine means
Catalan espionatge
- espionatgeact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Chinese Cantonese 間諜活動 /间谍活动
- 間諜活動 /间谍活动 (gaan³ dip⁶ wut⁶ dung⁶)act of learning secret information through clandestine means
Chinese Mandarin 間諜活動 /间谍活动
- 間諜活動 /间谍活动 (jiàndié huódòng)act of learning secret information through clandestine means
Czech špionáž
- špionážact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Danish spionage
- spionageact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Dutch spionage
- spionageact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Esperanto spionado
- spionadoact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Estonian spionaaž
- spionaažact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Finnish vakoilu
- vakoiluact of learning secret information through clandestine means
French espionnage
- espionnageact of learning secret information through clandestine means
German Spionage
- Spionageact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Greek κατασκοπία, κατασκοπεία
- κατασκοπία (kataskopía)act of learning secret information through clandestine means
- κατασκοπεία (kataskopeía)act of learning secret information through clandestine means
Hebrew ריגול, רִגּוּל
- ריגולact of learning secret information through clandestine means
- רִגּוּל (rigúl)act of learning secret information through clandestine means
Hindi गुप्तचर्या, जासूसी
- गुप्तचर्या (guptacaryā)act of learning secret information through clandestine means
- जासूसी (jāsūsī)act of learning secret information through clandestine means
- चारवृत्ति (cārvŕtti)act of learning secret information through clandestine means
Hungarian kémkedés
- kémkedésact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Icelandic njósnir, njósn
- njósniract of learning secret information through clandestine means
- njósnact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Indonesian spionase, pengintaian
- spionaseact of learning secret information through clandestine means
- pengintaianact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Italian spionaggio
- spionaggioact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Japanese スパイ行為, スパイ罪
- スパイ行為 (supai kōi)act of learning secret information through clandestine means
- スパイ罪 (supaizai)act of learning secret information through clandestine means
- 間諜罪 (kanchōzai)act of learning secret information through clandestine means
Korean 스파이 행위, 간첩죄
- 스파이 행위 (seupai haeng'wi)act of learning secret information through clandestine means
- 간첩죄 (gancheopjoe)act of learning secret information through clandestine means
Latvian spiegošana
- spiegošanaact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Lithuanian žvalgyba
- žvalgybaact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Malay pengintipan
- pengintipanact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Māori mahi tūtei, tūteitanga
- mahi tūteiact of learning secret information through clandestine means
- tūteitangaact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Norwegian Bokmål spionasje
- spionasjeact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Polish szpiegostwo, wywiad
- szpiegostwoact of learning secret information through clandestine means
- wywiadact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Portuguese espionagem
- espionagemact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Romanian spionaj
- spionajact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Russian шпиона́ж
- шпиона́ж (špionáž)act of learning secret information through clandestine means
Slovak špionáž
- špionážact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Spanish espionaje
- espionajeact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Swedish spioneri, spionage
- spioneriact of learning secret information through clandestine means
- spionageact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Tagalog pagbatyaw, espiyonahe
- pagbatyawact of learning secret information through clandestine means
- espiyonaheact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Thai จารกรรม
- จารกรรม (jaa-rá-gam)act of learning secret information through clandestine means
Turkish espiyonaj, casusluk
- espiyonajact of learning secret information through clandestine means
- casuslukact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Ukrainian шпигу́нство, шпіона́ж
- шпигу́нство (špyhúnstvo)act of learning secret information through clandestine means
- шпіона́ж (špionáž)act of learning secret information through clandestine means
Urdu جاسُوسی
- جاسُوسی (jāsūsī)act of learning secret information through clandestine means
Vietnamese hoạt động tình báo
- hoạt động tình báoact of learning secret information through clandestine means
Yiddish שפּיאָנאַזש
- שפּיאָנאַזש (shpyonazh)act of learning secret information through clandestine means
Cite this entry
espionage. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/espionage
“espionage.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/espionage. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “espionage,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/espionage.
Source: espionage on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.