eavesdropping

noun

eaves·​drop·​ping ˈēvz-ˌdrä-piŋ How to pronounce eavesdropping (audio)
: the act of secretly listening to something private
Highly sophisticated means of electronic eavesdropping were developed and put into use, largely uncontrolled by the law.Wayne R. LaFave & Jerold H. Israel
For a moment, I was worried he'd found out about my eavesdropping the night before, but that didn't seem to be the problem.Rick Riordan

Examples of eavesdropping in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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The Parcae project revolutionized electronic eavesdropping Ivan Amato NRO In the early 1970s, the Cold War had reached a particularly frigid moment, and U.S. military and intelligence officials had a problem. IEEE Spectrum, 21 Jan. 2025 There is also additional information on how this works to protect governments from nation state eavesdropping on the iOS platform. Davey Winder, Forbes, 23 Dec. 2024 At some point, talking to her stopped feeling like an interview and more like eavesdropping as Glaser let her inner voice spiral. Jason Zinoman, New York Times, 3 Jan. 2025 In September, authorities searched Wen’s home and found around 50,000 rounds of 9 mm ammunition and a receiver that detects eavesdropping devices, the U.S. attorney’s office in Los Angeles said. Phil Helsel, NBC News, 4 Dec. 2024 See all Example Sentences for eavesdropping 

Word History

First Known Use

1641, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of eavesdropping was in 1641

Dictionary Entries Near eavesdropping

Cite this Entry

“Eavesdropping.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/eavesdropping. Accessed 16 Feb. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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