espionage

[es-pee-uh-nahzh, -nij, es-pee-uh-nahzh]

noun

1. the act or practice of spying.

2. the use of spies by a government to discover the military and political secrets of other nations.

3. the use of spies by a corporation or the like to acquire the plans, technical knowledge, etc., of a competitor.

   industrial espionage.

espionage

/ ˌɛspɪəˈnɑːʒ, ˈɛspɪəˌnɑːʒ, ˈɛspɪənɪdʒ /

noun

1. the systematic use of spies to obtain secret information, esp by governments to discover military or political secrets

2. the act or practice of spying

Other Word Forms

• nonespionage noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of espionage¹

First recorded in 1785–95; from French espionnage, Middle French espionage, from espionn(er) “to spy” (derivative of espion “a spy,” from Italian spione, from Germanic ) + -age -age; espy

Word History and Origins

Origin of espionage¹

C18: from French espionnage, from espionner to spy, from espion spy, from Old Italian spione, of Germanic origin; compare German spähen to _spy

Example Sentences

Francken told Belgian radio on Monday that it looked like an espionage operation, but said he would not speculate on who could be behind it.

Read more on BBC

The two were accused by China of espionage and were taken into custody in 2018.

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But this all raises the question of what exactly Chinese espionage looks like in the modern world.

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He continued: "He never left his bedroom. He never met the people he recruited... These are not sophisticated agents of espionage."

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One test will be whether his government approves a proposed Chinese mega-embassy in London despite the espionage risks.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• intelligence