as in to notice
to make note of (something) through the use of one's eyes
out of the corner of my eye I espied the squirrel making another raid on the bird feeder
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Recent Examples of espy
The film’s comedy is built from a series of infinitesimal touches and chance intrusions, as when Édouard, espying Charles in the street, leaps from his seat at a sidewalk café and jostles a waiter bearing drinks.
—
Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 9 July 2024
Imprisoned by the Duke of Athens, the cousins espy the beautiful Emilia from their cell—and each man falls immediately in love.
—Andrea Mays, Smithsonian Magazine, 14 May 2024
If a basket-hanger was espied by the recipient, the recipient would give chase and try to steal a kiss from the basket-hanger.
—Southern Living Editors, Southern Living, 30 Jan. 2024
Images taken from different realities, different spaces, times, places that have been sort of cut out and pasted together to create a new scene that depicts something that no human eye would ever have espied.
—Philip Martin, Arkansas Online, 13 Mar. 2023
Resentful 1970s émigrés were prodding the West to espy its true enemy not in communism, but in an irredeemable Russia.
—Ignat Solzhenitsyn, WSJ, 23 Oct. 2020
The cub tried to sneak up on him, but was quickly espied by the older lion.
—Kelli Bender, PEOPLE.com, 20 June 2019
For instance, visitors can scan through an electronic infographic for terrariums filled with camouflaging Gulf Coast toads, then head outside onto more than 2 miles of dirt and boardwalk trails to espy the bayou's flora and fauna.
—Beau Evans, NOLA.com, 6 Oct. 2017
Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 9 July 2024
Imprisoned by the Duke of Athens, the cousins espy the beautiful Emilia from their cell—and each man falls immediately in love.
—Andrea Mays, Smithsonian Magazine, 14 May 2024
If a basket-hanger was espied by the recipient, the recipient would give chase and try to steal a kiss from the basket-hanger.
—Southern Living Editors, Southern Living, 30 Jan. 2024
Images taken from different realities, different spaces, times, places that have been sort of cut out and pasted together to create a new scene that depicts something that no human eye would ever have espied.
—Philip Martin, Arkansas Online, 13 Mar. 2023
Resentful 1970s émigrés were prodding the West to espy its true enemy not in communism, but in an irredeemable Russia.
—Ignat Solzhenitsyn, WSJ, 23 Oct. 2020
The cub tried to sneak up on him, but was quickly espied by the older lion.
—Kelli Bender, PEOPLE.com, 20 June 2019
For instance, visitors can scan through an electronic infographic for terrariums filled with camouflaging Gulf Coast toads, then head outside onto more than 2 miles of dirt and boardwalk trails to espy the bayou's flora and fauna.
—Beau Evans, NOLA.com, 6 Oct. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for espy
Verb
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But in the past two years, users have begun to notice advertisements for the casino taking up a sizable amount of space online.—
CT Jones,
Rolling Stone,
23 Feb. 2025
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Upon following up with the participants two weeks later, Rodriguez noticed that those who practiced cognitive reappraisal writing tasks experienced significantly less conflict, aggression and disagreements in their romantic relationship.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes,
22 Feb. 2025
Verb
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Austria saw some success with this rule, but Australia did not.—
Aldo Flores-Quiroga,
Forbes,
26 Feb. 2025
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For years, Broccoli and Wilson resisted the siren call to fully exploit the property that is based on Ian Fleming’s spy novels across multiple platforms and sometimes didn’t see eye-to-eye with each other, according to insiders.—
Tatiana Siegel,
Variety,
26 Feb. 2025
Verb
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The space rock was spotted late last year and reported on Dec. 27, 2024, to the Minor Planet Center, the official authority for observing and reporting new asteroids, comets and other small bodies in the solar system.—
James Powel,
USA TODAY,
21 Feb. 2025
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The boat was spotted by a U.S. Customs and Border Protection Air and Marine Operations patrol aircraft and notified the Coast Guard.—
Louis Casiano,
Fox News,
20 Feb. 2025
Verb
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Hawaii has reportedly eyed the idea positively, and rival Candela has its electric hydrofoil vessels already operating in Stockholm, Sweden, with plans for Lake Tahoe in the US, as well as Saudi Arabia and New Zealand.—
Nicole Kobie,
Forbes,
24 Feb. 2025
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On the other hand, this is expected to be an uncommonly deep draft at running back and teams looking for tailbacks may be eyeing a rookie.—
Matt Barrows,
The Athletic,
24 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Espy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/espy. Accessed 4 Mar. 2025.
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