: 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
noun
es·pi·o·nage
\
ˈe-spē-ə-ˌnäzh
,
-ˌnäj
,
-nij
,
Canadian also
-ˌnazh
;
ˌe-spē-ə-ˈnäzh
;
i-ˈspē-ə-nij
\
Updated on: 12 May 2018
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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 of espionage from the Web
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After an espionage case that went nowhere and two and half years of court battles, a Chinese-American scientist will soon return to work in Ohio.
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The hacker is also wanted by the United States for espionage charges in relation to WikiLeaks’ publication of classified information.
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The maximum statutory penalty for conspiracy to commit economic espionage is 15 years incarceration.
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Whenever Scandal tried to weave in espionage-thriller ingredients—explosions, torture scenes—the character development suffered.
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Huawei has long been suspected of committing espionage for China.
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Spies and corporate espionage are a fixture of Silicon Valley.
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Invisible ink is an espionage trick that dates back centuries.
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In Conversation Ahead of his new espionage series, the actor discusses Machiavelli, the internal conflict of a spy-cum-assassin, and why the British love playing villains.
These 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.
espionage Synonyms
Synonyms
Related Words
counterespionage, counterintelligence, intelligence;
Other Government and Politics Terms
ESPIONAGE Defined for English Language Learners
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: the things that are done to find out secrets from enemies or competitors : the activity of spying
ESPIONAGE Defined for Kids
: the practice of spying : the use of spies
Law Dictionary
: 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
Learn More about espionage
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Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for espionage Spanish Central: Translation of espionage Nglish: Translation of espionage for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of espionage for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about espionage
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