eavesdropping (on)

verb

Definition of eavesdropping (on)next
present participle of eavesdrop (on)
as in listening 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 eavesdropping (on)
  1. monitoring
  2. spying
  3. hearing
Verb
  • Other members of the crew sat beside and behind him, monitoring scripts and schedules on screens of their own.
    — Matt Alt, New Yorker, 8 Nov. 2026
  • Nearly three decades later, Leach is now the CEO of Dexcom, a roughly $30 billion company that develops non-invasive glucose-monitoring systems.
    — Preston Fore, Fortune, 7 Nov. 2026
Definition of monitoring
Verb
  • The actress provided the voice of a technologically advanced, data-spying smart refrigerator.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 22 Oct. 2026
  • To support their request to detain Alfozan, the government pointed to a case where former Twitter employees were charged with spying for the Saudi government.
    — Ashley Belanger, ArsTechnica, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of spying
Verb
  • Residents on Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz reported hearing several explosions late on Sunday evening, Iranian state media reported.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 9 Nov. 2026
  • That delay might be explained, as Skepta has suggested in interviews, by the pursuit of perfection—or the weight of having to say something worth hearing.
    — Will Pritchard, Pitchfork, 9 Nov. 2026
Definition of hearing
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.

Browse Nearby Words

eavesdropping
eavesdropping (on)
eavesdrops (on)
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Cite this Entry

“Eavesdropping (on).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/eavesdropping%20%28on%29. Accessed 10 Nov. 2026.

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