prey
[prey]
- an animal hunted or seized for food, especially by a carnivorous animal.
- a person or thing that is the victim of an enemy, a swindler, a disease, etc.; gull.
- the action or habit of preying: a beast of prey.
- Archaic. booty or plunder.
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- to seize and devour prey, as an animal does (usually followed by on or upon): Foxes prey on rabbits.
- to make raids or attacks for booty or plunder: The Vikings preyed on coastal settlements.
- to exert a harmful or destructive influence: His worries preyed upon his mind.
- to victimize another or others (usually followed by on or upon): loan sharks that prey upon the poor.
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Origin of prey
1200–50; Middle English preye < Old French < Latin praeda booty, prey; akin to prehendere to grasp, seize (see prehension)
Synonyms
See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.comDictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words
devastatepillagerobliberaterequisitionlootsalvageransackdemolishconsumewreckoverwhelmrazeruinshatterdamageimpairplundergutdisruptExamples from the Web for preyed
Contemporary Examples
He also says that Vannoni preyed on those who had lost hope, because they had “less to lose.”
As charming as he was ruthless and fueled by sectarian hate, Mehsud preyed on military forces and civilians alike.
The Deaths You Missed This YearMalcolm Jones, Jimmy So, Michael Moynihan, Caitlin Dickson
December 30, 2013
The film is about a very young aspiring actress who is preyed on by a much older, established star.
Susan Sarandon On ‘The Last of Robin Hood,’ NYC Mayor's Race, Being Hacked, MoreMarlow Stern
September 8, 2013
In the story, she was christened “The Hipster Grifter,” because she preyed upon skinny-jeaned Williamsburg sorts.
Historical Examples
All this preyed on my mind, though, and I used to cry all night.
My Double LifeSarah Bernhardt
Knowing this, they are preyed upon by thousands of foreign swindlers.
As A Chinaman Saw UsAnonymous
His face was dark with all the passions which had preyed upon the man.
Mr. Grex of Monte CarloE. Phillips Oppenheim
She wept bitterly, and took it to heart so, it preyed on her health and spirits.
Put Yourself in His PlaceCharles Reade
In Europe it is preyed upon by minute ichneumon flies (Chalcids).
Our Common InsectsAlpheus Spring Packard
prey
- an animal hunted or captured by another for food
- a person or thing that becomes the victim of a hostile person, influence, etc
- beast of prey an animal that preys on others for food
- bird of prey a bird that preys on others for food
- an archaic word for booty 1
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- to hunt or seize food by killing other animals
- to make a victim (of others), as by profiting at their expense
- to exert a depressing or obsessive effect (on the mind, spirits, etc); weigh heavily (upon)
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Word Origin
C13: from Old French preie, from Latin praeda booty; see predatory
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for preyed
prey
n.
mid-13c., "animal hunted for food," also "that which is taken in war," from Old French preie "booty, animal taken in the chase" (mid-12c., Modern French proie), from Latin praeda "booty, plunder, game hunted," earlier praeheda, related to prehendere "to grasp, seize" (see prehensile).
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prey
v.
c.1300, "to plunder, pillage, ravage," from prey (n.) and in part from Old French preer, earlier preder (c.1040), from Late Latin praedare, from praeda (see prey (n.)). Its sense of "to kill and devour" is attested from mid-14c. Related: Preyed; preying.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper