spy

From Old Norse spýja, from Proto-Germanic *spīwaną, from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ptyēw- (“to spit, vomit”). Compare Swedish and Norwegian Bokmål spy, Icelandic spýja, English spew, Dutch spuwen, German speien.


spy

to barf (US), throw up, vomit, spew (also figurative)

head

spy (present tense spyr or spyer, simple past spyede, past participle spyet)

spyr (present)
spyer (present)
spyede (past)
spyet (participle past)


spy

The dead leap at the throat, destroy
The meaning of the day; dark forms
Have scaled your walls, and spies betray
Old secrets to amorphous swarms.

1941, Theodore Roethke, “Feud”, in Open House, New York, N.Y.: Alfred A[braham] Knopf, →OCLC; republished in The Collected Poems of Theodore Roethke, London: Faber and Faber […], 1968, →OCLC, page 4:

Even without hovering drones, a lurking assassin, a thumping score and a denouement, the real-life story of Edward Snowden, a rogue spy on the run, could be straight out of the cinema. But, as with Hollywood, the subplots and exotic locations may distract from the real message: America’s discomfort and its foes’ glee.

2013 June 29, “Travels and travails”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8842, page 55:

(espionage) A person who secretly watches and examines the actions of other individuals or organizations and gathers information on them (usually to gain an advantage).

(American football) A defensive player assigned to cover an offensive backfield player man-to-man when they are expected to engage in a running play, but the offensive player does not run with the ball immediately.

From Middle English spien, aphetic variant of earlier espien (“to espy”), from Old French espier (“to spy”), from Frankish *spehōn (“to spy”), from Proto-Germanic *spehōną (“to see, look”), from Proto-Indo-European *speḱ- (“to look”). Akin to German spähen (“to spy”), Dutch spieden (“to spy”).
The noun displaced native Old English sċēawere (literally “watcher”), which was also the word for "mirror." In this sense, the verb displaced Old English sċēawian, which was also the word for "to watch" and became the Modern English word show.


spy

During the Cold War, Russia and America would each spy on each other for recon.

I think I can spy that hot guy coming over here.

VVherefore lift up your heads, brethren, and look about vvith your eyes, ſpy vvhat things are to be reformed in the Church of England.

1536 June 16 (Gregorian calendar), Hugh Latimer, “Sermon II. Master Latimer’s Discourse on the Same Day in the Afternoon [Preached to the Convocation of the Clergy, before the Parliament Began, the Sixth Day of June, the Twenty Eighth Year of the Reign of the Late King Henry VIII].”, in The Sermons of the Right Reverend Father in God, Master Hugh Latimer, Bishop of Worcester. […], volume I, London: […] J. Scott, […], published 1758, →OCLC, page 32:

One in reading, skipped over all sentences where he spied a note of admiration.

1720, Jonathan Swift, A Letter to a Young Clergyman:

Child, I see thee! Child, I spy thee!

The next person they spied was a Bandicoot carrying a watermelon.

1918, Norman Lindsay, The Magic Pudding, page 68:

(transitive) To spot; to catch sight of; to espy.

(As I confeſſe it is my Natures plague / To ſpy into Abuſes, and of my iealouſie / Shapes faults that are not)

c. 1603–1604 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Othello, the Moore of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene iii], page 324:

(intransitive) To search narrowly; to scrutinize.

(transitive) To explore; to see; to view; inspect and examine secretly, as a country.

en-verb

spy (third-person singular simple present spies, present participle spying, simple past and past participle spied)

spies (present singular third-person)
spying (participle present)
spied (participle past)
spied (past)

→ Japanese: スパイ (supai)

→ Korean: 스파이 (seupai)


spy

From Old Norse spýja, from Proto-Germanic *spīwaną, from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ptyēw- (“to spit, vomit”). Compare Swedish and Danish spy, Icelandic spýja, English spew, Dutch spuwen, German speien.


spy

head

spy (present tense spyr, simple past spydde, past participle spydd)

spyr (present)
spydde (past)
spydd (participle past)


spy

(intransitive, about blowflies) to lay eggs

spyr (present)
spydde (past)
spytt (participle past)
spydd (participle past)
spyast (infinitive passive)
spyande (participle present)
spy (imperative)

From Old Norse spýja. The noun is derived from the verb.


spy

Hon känner magen dra sig samman och hon kastar sig åt sidan, spyr all galla ur magen och det känns oändligt skönt och hela hon är svett och en kylig fuktighet.

2015, Mons Kallentoft, Vårlik, Bokförlaget Forum, →ISBN:

När jag hör det, vill jag spy. För det är en dubbelmoral. Och jag har tvingats spy upp den — gång på gång.

2018, Rune Pär Olofsson, Tillsammans, Lindhardt og Ringhof, →ISBN:

Jag drabbades av järnbrist och förstoppning och jag spydde en hel del. I flera dagar var jag inlagd på lasarettet.

2019 December 19, Charlotta Lindgren, En hel jävla bok om cancer, Lindhardt og Ringhof, →ISBN:

spy (present spyr, preterite spydde, supine spytt, imperative spy)

spyr (present)
spydde (preterite)
spytt (supine)
spy (imperative)
spy (active infinitive)
spys (infinitive passive)
spytt (active supine)
spytts (passive supine)
spy (active imperative)
spyn (active archaic)
spyr (active indicative present)
spydde (active indicative past)
spys (indicative passive present)
spyddes (indicative passive past)
spy (active archaic present)
spydde (active archaic past)
spys (archaic passive present)
spyddes (archaic passive past)
spy (active dated present subjunctive)
spydde (active dated past subjunctive)
spys (dated passive present subjunctive)
spyddes (dated passive past subjunctive)
spyende (active participle past present)
spydd (active participle past)

From Old Swedish spȳia, spȳa, spȳ, from Old Norse spýja, from Proto-Germanic *spīwaną, from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ptyēw- (“to spit, vomit”). Compare Norwegian and Danish spy, Icelandic spýja, English spew, Dutch spuwen, German speien.