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.

Beijing claims democratically-governed Taiwan as its own, and the two have been spying on each other for decades.

From BBC • Sep. 26, 2025

People have been spying on one another since the dawn of time; the ancient Greeks, the Romans, the British Empire, the Persian Empire, the Soviet Union, Saddam Hussein, Vladimir Putin, they all have done it.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 7, 2023

And in 2018, the Memphis Police Department was found to have been spying on activists.

From New York Times • Jan. 27, 2023

He would not say who could have been spying on the premier and whether any foreign powers or Spanish groups were suspected of being behind it.

From Reuters • May 2, 2022

“They could have been spying on the people that lived there. Maybe that really was East River....”

From "The Darkest Minds" by Alexandra Bracken