espionage
noun
es·pi·o·nage
| \ ˈe-spē-ə-ˌnäzh
, -ˌnäj, -nij, Canadian also -ˌnazh; ˌe-spē-ə-ˈnäzh; i-ˈspē-ə-nij
\
, -ˌnäj, -nij, Canadian also -ˌnazh; ˌe-spē-ə-ˈnäzh; i-ˈspē-ə-nij
\
Definition of espionage
: 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
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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
Pastor-Pareja rejects the idea the Thousand Talents Program is a tool for academic espionage. — Jeffrey Mervis, Science | AAAS, "When Europeans do science in China," 11 Sep. 2019 The prosecution is the latest effort by the Trump administration to punish Huawei for alleged industrial espionage. — Timothy B. Lee, Ars Technica, "Chinese professor stole hard drive secrets for Huawei, US government charges," 9 Sep. 2019 And Baron Cohen, known best for his outrageous comedy, delivers a surprisingly effective dramatic performance as the Egyptian ex-patriot who became an essential asset in Israel’s war against Syria before being executed for espionage in 1965. — Kristen Baldwin, EW.com, "Sacha Baron Cohen puts his subterfuge skills to good use in Netflix's The Spy," 5 Sep. 2019 But the researchers, all Iranian, soon drew suspicion from the Revolutionary Guard Corps, a powerful branch of Iran’s armed forces, and were arrested last year for alleged espionage. — Ben Guarino, BostonGlobe.com, "Environmentalists filmed Iran’s cheetahs. They could be executed for spying.," 25 Aug. 2019 But the Iranian network may have become overextended and easier for rival espionage agencies to penetrate. — The Economist, "New fronts open up in the conflict between Israel and Iran," 29 Aug. 2019 And the result is something like a protofeminist Mad Men transposed to the world of international espionage — all excellent midcentury style and intrigue set against real, indelible history. — Leah Greenblatt, EW.com, "The Secrets We Kept is a crackling, female-centered spy thriller rooted in real life," 28 Aug. 2019 With its tale of corporate espionage, treachery and boundless ambition, Google had sought to derail Uber’s self-driving-car unit, which is central to its plan to one day turn a profit by, in part, eliminating payments to human drivers. — Greg Bensinger, Washington Post, "U.S. attorney’s office files charges against former Google executive Anthony Levandowski, who allegedly stole self-driving car trade secrets and gave them to Uber.," 27 Aug. 2019 Lance Gardner is pricelessly unflappable as Richard Hannay, a world-weary gent who haplessly gets swept up by pure chance into a convoluted plot of murder and international espionage. — Sam Hurwitt, The Mercury News, "Review: TheatreWorks delivers madcap comedy ’39 Steps’ with a sure hand," 26 Aug. 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'espionage.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for espionage
espionage
noun
English Language Learners Definition of espionage
: the things that are done to find out secrets from enemies or competitors : the activity of spying
See the full definition for espionage in the English Language Learners Dictionary
espionage
noun
es·pi·o·nage
| \ ˈe-spē-ə-ˌnäzh
\
\
Kids Definition of espionage
: the practice of spying : the use of spies
espionage
noun
es·pi·o·nage
| \ ˈes-pē-ə-ˌnäzh, -ˌnäj, -nij
\
\
Legal Definition of espionage
: 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
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