prey

verb

preyed; preying

intransitive verb

1

a

: to seize and devour prey

b

: to commit violence or robbery or fraud

2

: to have an injurious, destructive, or wasting effect

worry preyed upon his mind

3

: to make raids for the sake of booty

preyer noun

Synonyms of prey

• feed (on, upon, or off)

Examples of prey in a Sentence

a fox has been preying on the chickens

Recent Examples on the Web

Prosecutors meanwhile said Campbell is a predator who preyed upon extremely intoxicated individuals by pretending to be an Uber driver. —Colleen Cronin, Boston Herald, 4 June 2026

No one knows better than Reiter how Epstein was able to prey on so many girls in Palm Beach and get away with it. —Julie K. Brown, Miami Herald, 4 June 2026

Industry participants included SpaceX, Apple, Google, Coinbase, and Facebook’s parent Meta; fraudsters often exploit social media and internet services in impersonation schemes to prey on vulnerable US consumers. —Michael Kan, PC Magazine, 3 June 2026

As explained in the 2015 Toxicon study, honey badgers are known to prey on venomous species, including cobras. —Scott Travers, Forbes.com, 31 May 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French preier, from Latin praedari, from praeda

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Phrases Containing prey

• be/fall prey to
• bird of prey
• prey on the mind of
• prey on/upon
• prey on/upon someone's mind
• prey/weigh on someone's mind

Rhymes for prey

• ay
• bay
• bey
• brae
• cay
• chez
• dey
• dray
• fay
• fey
• flay
• fray

Kids Definition

prey

1 of 2 noun

ˈprā 

1

: an animal hunted or killed by another animal for food

2

: a person who is helpless or unable to escape attack : victim

3

: the act or habit of seizing and pouncing upon

prey

2 of 2 verb

preyed; preying

1

a

: to seize and eat something as prey

b

: to do violent or dishonest acts

robbers who preyed on travelers

2

: to have a harmful effect

fears that prey on the mind