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
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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
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in questioning
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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
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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
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as in interfering
to interest oneself in what is not one's concern
don't go prying into other people's business
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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
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for prying
Adjective
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Fortunately, they are met by curious neighbors who saunter into Robyn and Dante’s love nest.—
Rosy Cordero,
Deadline,
4 May 2025
-
Tracing a stellar signal The research team was curious to see whether there might be a connection between the radiation from magnetar flares and the formation of heavy elements.—
Ashley Strickland,
CNN Money,
3 May 2025
Adjective
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But some of America’s most popular parks also require reservations, particularly during their busy season: summer.—
Eve Chen,
USA Today,
29 Apr. 2025
-
Situated well above the bustle of Mykonos busiest towns, this one-bedroom suite offers a front-row seat to the golden hour.—
Bailey Berg,
Architectural Digest,
29 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Each juror will either be excused for cause or asked to return to the main courtroom for further questioning.—
Adam Reiss,
NBC news,
1 May 2025
-
Doing Business Casual With a Bomber Jacket As India’s armed forces began their search for the attackers, demolishing the homes of people identified as suspects in Kashmir and detaining thousands for questioning, the two countries also exchanged gunfire along their border.—
Anupreeta Das,
New York Times,
1 May 2025
Adjective
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An inquisitive crowd was lined up down the Leonard Street sidewalk, where performers dressed in rose gold dresses welcomed guests into the annual Tribeca Ball.—
Kristen Tauer,
Footwear News,
16 Apr. 2025
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In the coming years, across sectors, curious and inquisitive individuals who demonstrate strong learning agility, and an ability to fuse human and machine skills will become top talent.—
Amanda Kavanagh | This Column was created by Jobbio,
The Hill,
4 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Even an especially grueling interrogation by British parliamentarians at a hearing earlier this year provided few straight answers.—
Jasmin Malik Chua,
Sourcing Journal,
2 May 2025
-
And realizing what all of this led to, Louise paces the interrogation room, stewing and doubting herself.—
Sara Netzley,
EW.com,
24 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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The challenge of using AI in politics lies in harnessing these innovations while ensuring that personalization does not evolve into intrusive surveillance or manipulative targeting.—
Kris Qiu,
Forbes.com,
6 May 2025
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Now Pi boards have their tiny bits and bigger pieces soldered at the same time through an intrusive reflow soldering process undertaken with Raspberry Pi's UK manufacturing partner, Sony.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
30 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Netanyahu has tried to blame the failures on the army and security agencies and repeatedly resisted calls for an official state commission of inquiry that would look into the government decision-making as well.—
Natalie Melzer,
Los Angeles Times,
29 Apr. 2025
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Emory Williams reportedly received inquiries from other schools but ultimately decided not to leave before last Friday’s deadline to enter the portal.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
28 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Another commented: Really just nosy, not even trying to escape.—
Thomas G. Moukawsher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
17 Apr. 2025
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Politico broke the real-estate news by chatting with nosy neighbors and tracking data on the Meta CEO’s private jet.—
Adriane Quinlan,
Curbed,
3 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Prying.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/prying. Accessed 13 May. 2025.
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