espionage

noun

es·​pi·​o·​nage ˈe-spē-ə-ˌnäzh  -ˌnäj 

-nij,

 Canadian also  -ˌnazh;

ˌe-spē-ə-ˈnäzh;

i-ˈspē-ə-nij

: the practice of spying or using spies to obtain information about the plans and activities especially of a foreign government or a competing company

industrial espionage

Synonyms

• spying

Examples of espionage in a Sentence

He was charged with several counts of espionage.

the acts of espionage on behalf of the Confederacy carried on by Belle Boyd and Rose Greenhow

Recent Examples on the Web

State agencies and employees responsible for handling critical infrastructure, intellectual property, and personal information must be protected from malicious espionage operations by the Chinese Communist Party. —Dan Perry, Newsweek, 31 Jan. 2025

The Netflix series stars Centineo as newcomer CIA lawyer Owen Hendricks, who is first brought into an international blackmail scandal in season 1 and then involved in a life-threatening espionage situation in South Korea in season 2. —Julia Moore, People.com, 31 Jan. 2025

The then-former president was charged with dozens of felony counts, including violations of the espionage act and obstruction of justice. —Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News, 29 Jan. 2025

The latest in this series is Back in Action, a comedy action flick starring Cameron Diaz and Jamie Foxx as a pair of married former CIA spies who are pulled back into espionage after their secret identities are exposed. —Caroline Reid, Forbes, 25 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

French espionnage, from Middle French, from espionner to spy, from espion spy, from Old Italian spione, from spia, of Germanic origin; akin to Old High German spehōn to spy — more at spy

First Known Use

1793, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

espionage

noun

es·​pi·​o·​nage ˈes-pē-ə-ˌnäzh  -näj 

-ˌnij

: the practice of spying : the use of spies

Legal Definition

espionage

noun

es·​pi·​o·​nage ˈes-pē-ə-ˌnäzh, -ˌnäj, -nij 

: the practice of gathering, transmitting, or losing through gross negligence information relating to the defense of the U.S. with the intent that or with reason to believe that the information will be used to the injury of the U.S. or the advantage of a foreign nation