wiretap
Americannoun
-
wiretaps
plural
verb (used with object)
-
wiretaps,
present (3rd person singular)
-
wiretapped,
past participle, past
-
wiretapping
present participle
-
to obtain (information, evidence, etc.) by tapping telephone or telegraph wires.
to wiretap conversations.
-
to listen in on by means of a wiretap.
to wiretap a telephone; to wiretap a conversation.
verb (used without object)
-
wiretaps,
present (3rd person singular)
-
wiretapped,
past participle, past
-
wiretapping
present participle
adjective
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
wiretapsimple
-
wiretapssimple
-
have wiretappedperfect
-
has wiretappedperfect
-
am wiretappingprogressive
-
are wiretappingprogressive
-
is wiretappingprogressive
-
have been wiretappingperfect progressive
-
has been wiretappingperfect progressive
Past
-
wiretappedsimple
-
had wiretappedperfect
-
was wiretappingprogressive
-
were wiretappingprogressive
-
had been wiretappingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of wiretap
First recorded in 1950–55; back formation from wiretapper
Explanation
To wiretap is to secretly listen in on someone's phone conversation. In some cases, the FBI will use a wiretap to investigate a serious federal crime. A wiretap is either the act of surveillance with a listening device or the device itself: "They put a wiretap on the mob boss's home phone, but he always uses a cellphone." As a verb, wiretap means to use such a device: "The government can't wiretap someone without a warrant." Since the invention of the telephone, law enforcement has used wiretaps — originally from the sense of tapping (obtaining information from) a telephone wire.
Vocabulary lists containing wiretap
Word Generation Weekly - Series 3
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Spies
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Let Me Hear a Rhyme
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
See Examples For:
Silverman also said police had conducted a wiretap operation in the case, but did not disclose the nature of it.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 23, 2026
In fact, conspirators were overheard on a wiretap saying they “wouldn’t trust Joe” to agree to their scheme.
From Barron's ● Oct. 17, 2025
Unnamed White House advisers who spoke with the Guardian said they raised the issue with aides close to Vice President JD Vance, only to find that the wiretap story was bunk.
From Salon ● May 27, 2025
Wise did indict two white Gun Trace Task Force officers, but only because they ended up being heard on a wiretap that was tracking a drug crew.
From Slate ● May 9, 2024
The prosecutor’s office, following Terryl’s instinct, used wiretap evidence to secure a conviction.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
According to an annual government report, the number of wiretaps obtained by DHS — often to investigate drug trafficking — plummeted to 23 in 2025, from 133 the previous year.
From Salon ● Aug. 15, 2026
With genetic data unable to distinguish between them, investigators relied on phone records, surveillance footage, wiretaps and efforts to corroborate their whereabouts and movements, according to Le Parisien.
From BBC ● Feb. 8, 2026
You typically have to have either wiretaps or recording in the rooms, or what appears to be the case here is a witness who is cooperating.
From Slate ● Jan. 7, 2026
On Tuesday, an appeals chamber found there had been insufficient evidence against Uribe, that wiretaps used in the trial had been illegally conducted, and that the trial judge had committed errors of "methodology."
From Barron's ● Oct. 21, 2025
The only evidence of Nixon’s shady dealings came from bugs and wiretaps, which Johnson certainly did not wish to make public.
From "Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War" by Steve Sheinkin
The anti-corruption bureau shared part of a wiretapped conversation as part of its case and said six more people had been identified as suspects.
From BBC ● May 12, 2026
The intelligence officers scribbled notes on wiretapped phone calls and typed thousands of pages of reports on opposition activities.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 29, 2025
The anti-corruption agency then gradually released a series of videos featuring wiretapped conversations of those implicated in the scheme.
From Barron's ● Nov. 13, 2025
People I knew and I, myself, were wiretapped and followed by FBI and military intelligence agents.
From Salon ● May 6, 2025
Whoever had wiretapped it would wonder why I didn't use it.
From Little Brother by Cory Doctorow
Four people have been found guilty and given jail terms by a Greek court after a wiretapping scandal shook the country in 2022.
From BBC ● Feb. 26, 2026
Schmidt and the company are accused of violating the California Comprehensive Computer Data Access and Fraud Act, and a section of the state penal code that prohibits wiretapping.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 20, 2025
Assuming they’d followed the law, arranging such surveillance would have involved a number of legal and technical steps, including securing a wiretapping warrant.
From Salon ● Jun. 25, 2025
Federal law is focused on preventing wiretapping, mandating that at least one party to the call knows that it’s being recorded.
From Slate ● Oct. 31, 2024
Saidy suggested that there was an actual plot to keep Fischer from becoming World Champion, and this involved the wiretapping of his parents’ phone.
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
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.
