eavesdrop (on)

as in to listen in (on)
to listen to (another in private conversation) a nosy traveler who likes to eavesdrop on his fellow airline passengers

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for eavesdrop (on)
Verb
  • Actively monitor and respond to feedback across platforms, including those of your brand’s leadership.
    Dave Minifie, Forbes.com, 18 June 2025
  • Carlisle, speaking on a local radio show, said Haliburton will likely be listed as questionable on the injury report as the team monitors his status ahead of the matchup.
    Tobias Bass, New York Times, 18 June 2025
Verb
  • In auditoriums and convention centers, businesspeople, educators, salespeople, and homemakers gathered to hear speakers such as Norman Vincent Peale, Zig Ziglar, and Art Linkletter, among others, extol the virtues of positive thinking, unbridled optimism, and hard work.
    Robert B. Tucker, Forbes.com, 19 June 2025
  • Earlier this week, the U.S. appeals court in San Francisco heard arguments in Gavin Newsom v. Donald Trump on whether the president can dispatch troops to quell the Los Angeles riots.
    Robert J. Delahunty, National Review, 19 June 2025
Verb
  • Some two weeks after Resilience's hard landing, NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) spied the lander's gravesite from its perch in orbit around the moon.
    Brett Tingley, Space.com, 24 June 2025
  • Over the fence, folks can spy the cavernous stage and the scaffolding above for the technical crew still in place, and that sparks memories.
    Dewayne Bevil, The Orlando Sentinel, 24 June 2025
Verb
  • Not everyone is comfortable complaining about work, especially at work– give your coworkers a safe place to talk, maybe on Zoom or some bar where their complaints won’t be overheard by the wrong people at the wrong time.
    James Folta, Literary Hub, 24 June 2025
  • Early on, Lucy is speaking with several other female wedding guests about matchmaking and about the big subject that underlies it—love—while Harry is standing alone, close enough to overhear but far enough to be discreet.
    Richard Brody, New Yorker, 13 June 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Cite this Entry

“Eavesdrop (on).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/eavesdrop%20%28on%29. Accessed 1 Jul. 2025.

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