See also: êpier

French

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Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /e.pje/
  • Audio:(file)

Etymology 1

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Inherited from Middle French espier, from Old French espier, from Vulgar Latin *spiāre (compare Italian spiare; Spanish, Portuguese, and Catalan espiar), from Frankish *spehōn, from Proto-Germanic *spehōną (to spy), from Proto-Indo-European *speḱ- (to look). Cognate with Middle Dutch spien (to spy), German spähen (to peek, peer, spy).

Verb

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épier

  1. (transitive) (espionage) to spy on, keep an eye on, watch
    • 1924, Emmanuel Bove, Mes Amis[1], archived from the original on 27 May 2019:
      Par les fenêtres entre-bâillées, j’épie les rez-de-chaussée. Je vois des plantes vertes qui viennent d’être arrosées, des douilles d’obus rutilantes et des lames de parquet étroites, cirées, qui font des zigzags.
      (please add an English translation of this quotation)
  2. (transitive, dated) to watch for

Etymology 2

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Inherited from Latin spicare.

Verb

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épier

  1. (intransitive, agriculture) to ear
Conjugation
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Further reading

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Anagrams

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