pry

¹ American  

[prahy] / praɪ /

verb (used without object)

pried, prying

1. to inquire impertinently or unnecessarily into something.

   to pry into the personal affairs of others.

2. to look closely or curiously; peer; peep.

---

noun

• pries
  plural

1. an impertinently inquisitive person.

2. an act of prying.

pry ² American  

[prahy] / praɪ /

verb (used with object)

pried, prying

1. to move, raise, or open by leverage.

2. to get, separate, or ferret out with difficulty.

   to pry a secret out of someone;

   We finally pried them away from the TV.

---

noun

• pries
  plural

1. a tool, as a crowbar, for raising, moving, or opening something by leverage.

2. the leverage exerted.

pry ¹ British  

/ praɪ /

verb

1. to make an impertinent or uninvited inquiry (about a private matter, topic, etc)

---

noun

1. the act of prying

2. a person who pries

pry ² British  

/ praɪ /

verb

1. to force open by levering

2. to extract or obtain with difficulty

   they had to pry the news out of him

---

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• pries
  plural

---

Etymology

Origin of pry¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English prien, “look about, peep”; further origin unknown

Origin of pry²

First recorded in 1800–10; back formation from prize ³, taken as a plural noun or 3rd person singular verb

---

Explanation

To pry is to try and find something out that is none of your business. We all hate people who pry, sticking their nose into our personal affairs, and it is an annoying and disrespectful habit. We are taught as children to ask questions, but sometimes those questions are used to pry, or peek into someone's private business. A nosy person will peek into some else's life the same way one might use a crowbar to pry open a crate (though — alert! — that pry has a different origin). Our word is thought to come from a word related to the Old English verb beprīwan, "to wink," which evolved into the Middle English prie, "to peer in," which gives us today's meaning.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

pry pries pried prying

Too many overlapping yarns in a movie make for a convoluted final product, a big clump of colorful material that’s too dense to pry apart to see the substance lurking below.

From Salon ● Oct. 29, 2026

A Medicare decision, especially alongside a blessing from guideline groups like the American Cancer Society, is what tends to pry open the commercial market, says Dan Brennan of TD Cowen.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026

Still, it’s tough to pry focus away from the powerful bull market in stocks.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 1, 2026

They were able to pry one open and found "several victims - we don't yet know exactly how many," said Brecht Speybrouck, spokesperson for the Brussels Labour Prosecutor's Office.

From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026

“That was us, not taking care of you. Hold on now, this won’t hurt a bit,” I say, trying to work the pry bar along the plank that came loose.

From "The Young Man and the Sea" by Rodman Philbrick

Spot gold pries are down 5% at $4,616 a troy ounce while silver is down 7.8% at $78.18 an ounce.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 2, 2026

Used by emergency personnel after serious car crashes, the hydraulic tool pries open or cuts through wreckage to rescue someone inside.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2024

Concerned, she visits a doctor, and when the specialist pries the welt open, hundreds of small spiders crawl out.

From National Geographic ● Jan. 12, 2024

U.S. oil and gas production, however, is on track to reach record highs in 2023 and 2024 due in part to rising oil pries.

From Reuters ● Sep. 18, 2023

A few seconds later, someone pries me loose from Ipphy, who is convinced I am her dead husband.

From "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen

In 1947, after reports of strong odors were reported, a huge crowd on the street watched as police and city officials pried their way inside to look for the brothers’ bodies.

From Salon ● Jul. 23, 2026

When the packages arrived, I pried open a pack and popped the top mint into my mouth, despite my wife’s admonition, “Are you insane?”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 4, 2026

An American diplomat and his Chinese counterpart pried the combatants apart.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 27, 2026

Gilbert’s book has pried open a feminist door that felt long slammed shut.

From Slate ● May 12, 2025

I pried the pink envelope open carefully, not wanting to tear a thing, and pulled out the card.

From "P.S. Be Eleven" by Rita Williams-Garcia

The money was supposedly a bribe to persuade her to go abroad, to avoid the prying eyes of the press.

From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026

Why Mr. Cabello insisted on keeping prying international eyes away from that building in La Guaira is a question that demands an answer.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 5, 2026

Outside, the home features a glittering lap pool that overlooks the ocean, while hedges that border the 1-acre property help to ensure complete privacy from prying eyes, something that Doherty is said to have prized.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 25, 2026

VPN stands for Virtual Private Network: it creates a secure private tunnel over public networks, such as the internet, to shield your online activity from prying eyes.

From Salon ● Jun. 2, 2026

At last she found an exit, and she pushed open the glass door and escaped outside, relieved to be away from the prying eyes of those who had watched her departing.

From "Ash" by Malinda Lo

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

---

Related Words

• extract
• pull
• wrest

---