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counterspy

American  
[koun-ter-spahy] / ˈkaʊn tərˌspaɪ /

noun

plural

counterspies

  1. a spy active in counterespionage.

counterspy British  
/ ˈkaʊntəˌspaɪ /

noun

  1. a spy working against or investigating enemy espionage

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of counterspy

First recorded in 1935–40; counter- + spy

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Technical counterintelligence measures also will be increased, and counterspy forces bolstered.

From Washington Times • Jul. 5, 2023

The CIA counterspy chief told the commission that “several thousand man-hours” were spent by officials analyzing Nosenko’s information, and key elements of his testimony produced doubts that his defection was legitimate.

From Washington Times • Jan. 1, 2023

If Philby was, as many have called him, the spy of the century, James Angleton was the counterspy of the century.

From Slate • Apr. 10, 2013

We’re still haunted by the legacy of these spectral figures, their legacy of doubling and doubt—and, yes, the shadowy counterspy linked to both.

From Slate • Apr. 10, 2013

A French counterspy had gotten his hands on a British spy’s list of ships carrying war supplies from French ports.

From "George Washington, Spymaster" by Thomas B. Allen

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.