espion
French
Etymology
From Middle French *espion (attested only in the verb espionner), from Old French espion, spion (“one assigned to observe or spy”).Alternatively, derived from Old French espie (“spy”), under influence of Italian spione (“spy”).[1]According to another theory, French espion is borrowed from Italian spione.[2] The word is ultimately from Frankish *spehō (“spy”), from Frankish *spehōn (“to look, spy”), from Proto-Germanic *spehōną.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ɛs.pjɔ̃/
Audio (file)
Noun
espion m (plural espions, feminine espionne)
- (espionage) spy (person who secretly watches)
Derived terms
- logiciel espion
Related terms
- espionnage
- espionner
Descendants
- → German: Spion (or directly from Italian)
- → Norman: espion
- → Turkish: ispiyon
References
- Jacqueline Picoche, Jean-Claude Rolland, Dictionnaire étymologique du français, Paris 2009, Dictionnaires Le Robert, →ISBN
- Albert Dauzat, Jean Dubois, Henri Mitterand, Nouveau dictionnaire étymologique, Paris, Librairie Larousse, 1964
Further reading
- “espion”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
Anagrams
- épions
Norman
Etymology
Borrowed from French espion.
Noun
espion m (plural espions)
- (Jersey) spy
Synonyms
- êpieux
Occitan
Pronunciation
Audio (Béarn) (file)
Noun
espion m (plural espions, feminine espiona, feminine plural espionas)
- spy
Related terms
- espionar