as in noticing
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for espying
Verb
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January 20 – February 18 Your voice stands out today, and people are noticing.—
Tarot.com,
Hartford Courant,
26 Apr. 2026 -
Aquarius January 20 – February 18 Your voice stands out today, and people are noticing.—
Tarot.com,
New York Daily News,
26 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Overhead watering may cause flowers to droop or spotting on petals; certain species are more subject to disease if watered from above.—
Steve Bender,
Southern Living,
29 Apr. 2026
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The drones are designed to perform autonomously or via remote control while doing such things as stalking submarines, spotting mines and serving as advance scouts for aircraft carriers.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
26 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The one big missing piece was seeing her team finally capture an elusive state championship.—
Buddy Collings,
The Orlando Sentinel,
29 Apr. 2026
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Mario Tama / Getty Images file In a report whose data was largely compiled before the recent run-up, Bank of America analysts found that so far, only lower-income households were seeing a significant impact on their budgets from higher gas prices.—
Rob Wile,
NBC news,
29 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Stays come in the form of historic palaces like Palazzu Nicrosi, perched on the hillside, or Le Couvent de Pozzo, a 15th-century convent converted into a guesthouse with a centerpiece pool eyeing the Italian island of Elba.—
Lane Nieset,
Travel + Leisure,
26 Apr. 2026
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The federal government was at one point eyeing Kansas City to build an immigration detention facility, and private prison company CoreCivic successfully reopened a center in Leavenworth, Kansas, despite local opposition.—
Sofi Zeman
April 25,
Kansas City Star,
25 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Encinitas began its current effort to amend its regulations regarding short-term rentals — places that are typically rented for less than 30 days — in 2021.—
Barbara Henry,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
26 Apr. 2026
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What stands out, in fact, is not Himelfarb’s illumination of the mechanics of chess but his insights regarding the psychologies of people.—
Louisa Thomas,
New Yorker,
26 Apr. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Espying.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/espying. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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