wiretap

American  

[wahyuhr-tap] / ˈwaɪərˌtæp /

noun

1. an act or instance of tapping telephone or telegraph wires for evidence or other information.

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verb (used with object)

wiretapped, wiretapping

1. to obtain (information, evidence, etc.) by tapping telephone or telegraph wires.

   to wiretap conversations.

2. to listen in on by means of a wiretap.

   to wiretap a telephone; to wiretap a conversation.

verb (used without object)

wiretapped, wiretapping

1. to tap telephone or telegraph wires for evidence, information, etc.

adjective

1. pertaining to or obtained by wiretap.

wiretap British  

/ ˈwaɪəˌtæp /

verb

1. to make a connection to a telegraph or telephone wire in order to obtain information secretly

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Other Word Forms

• wiretapper noun
• wiretapping noun

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.

Example Sentences

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

An investigation into the firings unearthed an even more alarming detail: the aides had been outed by a warrantless wiretap.

From Salon • May 27, 2025

The Swedish government has proposed new legislation that would allow police to wiretap children under the age of 15 in an attempt to grapple with the problem.

From BBC • Apr. 30, 2025

The officers had extraordinary records of complaints but were not under investigation until the wiretap.

From Slate • May 9, 2024

Beginning that very month, Harvey's wiretap commenced recording thousands of classified conversations among Soviet and East German military officials.

From "Spies: The Secret Showdown Between America and Russia" by Marc Favreau

Related Words

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• examine
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• inspect
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