1
as in curious
interested in what is not one's own business
as we moved into our new home, we could sense that there were prying eyes watching us
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in busy
thrusting oneself where one is not welcome or invited
prying neighbors who refuse to mind their own business
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in questioning
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
1
as in pulling
to raise, move, or pull apart with or as if with a lever
it took some effort to pry up the trap door
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in yanking
to draw out by force or with effort
a vain attempt to pry the cork out of a wine bottle
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in interfering
to interest oneself in what is not one's concern
don't go prying into other people's business
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of prying
Nicholas Ivor Martin and Jacobina Martin, oregonlive, 4 Feb. 2023
But inquiring into the specifics of familial dynamics is impudent and prying — and a line of questioning that most people would be happy to avoid answering themselves.
—Jacobina Martin, Washington Post, 4 Feb. 2023
The Google Nest Hub (7/10, WIRED Recommends) is a great smart display with no camera (and therefore no risk of unwanted prying eyes).
—Brenda Stolyar and Medea Giordano, WIRED, 28 Nov. 2022
To my mind, however, there’s a difference between a Google or a Facebook, which provide valuable services in return for their prying eyes, and an app that serves a single, ostensibly benign purpose — parking validation.
—Los Angeles Times, 12 Nov. 2021
Carry two phones While anti-spy software may be effective in staving off the prying eyes of the Chinese government, not everyone knows how to install it.
—Jane Li, Quartz, 6 Aug. 2019
Its purpose: to train librarians to implement secure protocols on their own web services, and to teach members of the community to evade the prying eyes of governments, corporations, and criminal hackers.
—Eoin O'Carroll, The Christian Science Monitor, 18 Oct. 2017
One reason Russians have loaded up on passports is that Cypriot citizenship helps them avoid the prying eyes of their government and pay lower taxes.
—Yalman Onaran, Bloomberg.com, 11 May 2017
Anthony Robledo, USA Today, 2 June 2026
With that said, the game has managed to rack up an impressive five million sales in under a month, developing a dedicated fanbase that's been probing and prying at the game's engine, with delightful and sometimes unexpected results.
—Alan Bradley, Space.com, 16 Apr. 2026
Palm Springs Has Still Got It This desert enclave has long been many things at once—a spa town, a sanctuary away from Hollywood's prying eyes, a design capital, a shoo-in for winter sun.
—Jason Sheeler, Condé Nast Traveler, 20 Feb. 2026
But in the quietest corner of the 10-acre sanctuary, away from the public’s prying eyes, a cohort of most unusual occupants sleep.
—Shi En Kim, AZCentral.com, 20 Feb. 2026
Videos of the shooting have spread online and appear to show Good, 37, being told to get out of her car, with one agent walking and prying at the door handle.
—Melissa Gomez, Los Angeles Times, 8 Jan. 2026
That was what led the princess to send her staff away and sneak the BBC crew in for the interview, isolating herself in the face of Bashir’s prying questions.
—Theresa Braine, Mercury News, 26 Nov. 2025
The New Jersey native also teased some new music on the way after some prying from Hudson.
—Michael Saponara, Billboard, 28 Oct. 2025
The prying end also serves as a nail puller, box cutter and bottle opener.
—Ben Coxworth
october 07, New Atlas, 7 Oct. 2025
Allison Degrushe, StyleCaster, 10 June 2026
Even remakes and adaptations of centuries-old novels are kept away from prying eyes, forgetting that everybody can look up the ending of every story ever told on Wikipedia.
—Richard Edwards, Space.com, 9 June 2026
Former Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said the US Navy is capable of prying open the Strait of Hormuz but that an extended military operation to free up the vital oil and gas waterway would be costly and require allies.
—Jen Judson, Bloomberg, 8 June 2026
Three days after announcing the hire of Chris MacFarland as their new hockey boss after somehow prying him out of Colorado, the club announced the hiring of Rob Blake as executive vice president of hockey operations on Friday.
—Pierre Lebrun, New York Times, 5 June 2026
Without prying into your personal life, is the album a story of going from being single to not being single?
—Brian Hiatt, Rolling Stone, 4 June 2026
Its Duplicate Finder clears clutter, advanced renaming options make your files easy to track, and military-grade encryption protects everything from prying eyes.
—Stackcommerce Team, PC Magazine, 28 May 2026
That doesn’t mean robbing Billy of his shot at prying open Homelander’s skull, but with only a symbolic solution to Trump’s authoritarian rise — love conquers all!
—Ben Travers, IndieWire, 20 May 2026
These evergreen or deciduous shrubs protect your garden oasis from prying eyes and create a sense of solitude.
—Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 14 May 2026
Adjective
But inquiring into the specifics of familial dynamics is impudent and prying -- and a line of questioning that most people would be happy to avoid answering themselves.
—Nicholas Ivor Martin and Jacobina Martin, oregonlive, 4 Feb. 2023
But inquiring into the specifics of familial dynamics is impudent and prying — and a line of questioning that most people would be happy to avoid answering themselves.
—Jacobina Martin, Washington Post, 4 Feb. 2023
The Google Nest Hub (7/10, WIRED Recommends) is a great smart display with no camera (and therefore no risk of unwanted prying eyes).
—Brenda Stolyar and Medea Giordano, WIRED, 28 Nov. 2022
To my mind, however, there’s a difference between a Google or a Facebook, which provide valuable services in return for their prying eyes, and an app that serves a single, ostensibly benign purpose — parking validation.
—Los Angeles Times, 12 Nov. 2021
Carry two phones While anti-spy software may be effective in staving off the prying eyes of the Chinese government, not everyone knows how to install it.
—Jane Li, Quartz, 6 Aug. 2019
Its purpose: to train librarians to implement secure protocols on their own web services, and to teach members of the community to evade the prying eyes of governments, corporations, and criminal hackers.
—Eoin O'Carroll, The Christian Science Monitor, 18 Oct. 2017
One reason Russians have loaded up on passports is that Cypriot citizenship helps them avoid the prying eyes of their government and pay lower taxes.
—Yalman Onaran, Bloomberg.com, 11 May 2017
Noun
Following Guthrie's prying, Lopez eventually caved in with a concrete answer.
—Anthony Robledo, USA Today, 2 June 2026
With that said, the game has managed to rack up an impressive five million sales in under a month, developing a dedicated fanbase that's been probing and prying at the game's engine, with delightful and sometimes unexpected results.
—Alan Bradley, Space.com, 16 Apr. 2026
Palm Springs Has Still Got It This desert enclave has long been many things at once—a spa town, a sanctuary away from Hollywood's prying eyes, a design capital, a shoo-in for winter sun.
—Jason Sheeler, Condé Nast Traveler, 20 Feb. 2026
But in the quietest corner of the 10-acre sanctuary, away from the public’s prying eyes, a cohort of most unusual occupants sleep.
—Shi En Kim, AZCentral.com, 20 Feb. 2026
Videos of the shooting have spread online and appear to show Good, 37, being told to get out of her car, with one agent walking and prying at the door handle.
—Melissa Gomez, Los Angeles Times, 8 Jan. 2026
That was what led the princess to send her staff away and sneak the BBC crew in for the interview, isolating herself in the face of Bashir’s prying questions.
—Theresa Braine, Mercury News, 26 Nov. 2025
The New Jersey native also teased some new music on the way after some prying from Hudson.
—Michael Saponara, Billboard, 28 Oct. 2025
The prying end also serves as a nail puller, box cutter and bottle opener.
—Ben Coxworth
october 07, New Atlas, 7 Oct. 2025
Verb
The two have already had a few chats away from prying eyes and shared a few kisses.
—Allison Degrushe, StyleCaster, 10 June 2026
Even remakes and adaptations of centuries-old novels are kept away from prying eyes, forgetting that everybody can look up the ending of every story ever told on Wikipedia.
—Richard Edwards, Space.com, 9 June 2026
Former Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said the US Navy is capable of prying open the Strait of Hormuz but that an extended military operation to free up the vital oil and gas waterway would be costly and require allies.
—Jen Judson, Bloomberg, 8 June 2026
Three days after announcing the hire of Chris MacFarland as their new hockey boss after somehow prying him out of Colorado, the club announced the hiring of Rob Blake as executive vice president of hockey operations on Friday.
—Pierre Lebrun, New York Times, 5 June 2026
Without prying into your personal life, is the album a story of going from being single to not being single?
—Brian Hiatt, Rolling Stone, 4 June 2026
Its Duplicate Finder clears clutter, advanced renaming options make your files easy to track, and military-grade encryption protects everything from prying eyes.
—Stackcommerce Team, PC Magazine, 28 May 2026
That doesn’t mean robbing Billy of his shot at prying open Homelander’s skull, but with only a symbolic solution to Trump’s authoritarian rise — love conquers all!
—Ben Travers, IndieWire, 20 May 2026
These evergreen or deciduous shrubs protect your garden oasis from prying eyes and create a sense of solitude.
—Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 14 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for prying
Adjective
-
Penny, at just 16, was a brave girl — radiant, curious, full of light.—
Carly Tagen-Dye,
PEOPLE,
15 June 2026
-
And so my job is to really to pay attention and to be curious.—
Michael Schneider,
Variety,
15 June 2026
Adjective
-
These would be my nap companions, a busy hive of bees whose entrance was out the side of the cottage.—
Christine Sarkis,
USA Today,
13 June 2026
-
While guests can still order from their full beer menu, KC Bier said guests should expect a limited menu of food for matches during the brewery’s busiest hours, like on weekends.—
Katelyn Umholtz,
Kansas City Star,
13 June 2026
Noun
-
Since Socrates, dialectical thinking had been a method of eliciting truth through questioning and refutation.—
Alex Ross,
New Yorker,
15 June 2026
-
Three people were taken into custody for questioning and police recovered a gun.—
Kerry Burke,
New York Daily News,
14 June 2026
Verb
-
There’s a lot of repairing and resolution that needs to happen in this final episode, but luckily things start strong with Liz and Jo-Ellen pulling each other aside to talk things through on the beach.—
Tom Smyth,
Vulture,
15 June 2026
-
But Hong Kong has a way of pulling people back.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
15 June 2026
Verb
-
Counsell admitted postgame that yanking Imanaga might not have been the right move.—
Meghan Montemurro,
Chicago Tribune,
16 June 2026
-
There are stories of major Nashville players yanking him off the street, keeping him drunk for days in hotels, then leaving Knoxville with stacks of new songs.—
Jonathan Rowe,
SPIN,
1 June 2026
Verb
-
The Kennedy Center’s leadership argued in its appeal Friday that the renovation was badly needed and accused the lower court, in terms that seemed similar to Trump’s speech patterns, of interfering in the effort.—
Steven Sloan,
Chicago Tribune,
12 June 2026
-
The Department of Justice had at one point investigated whether Pulte and his team were interfering in ongoing investigations.—
Lauren Peller,
ABC News,
11 June 2026
Adjective
-
The tools—the ability to automate data production, analyze large datasets, and gain insights faster and faster, married to the number and complexity of challenges, makes now a very rich time to be inquisitive.—
Tara Haelle,
Scientific American,
16 June 2026
-
Kone, who has no shortage of positive childlike qualities himself, grew super inquisitive.—
Joshua Kloke,
New York Times,
12 June 2026
Adjective
-
Unfortunately, the problem is that the staff are probably being trained to participate in this intrusive banter.—
Judith Martin,
Mercury News,
12 June 2026
-
It was alleged that Murphy had years of misconduct, which included improperly touching genitals during massages and intrusive observation during urine sampling for drug tests.—
Scott Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
10 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Prying.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/prying. Accessed 19 Jun. 2026.
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