What does "pry" mean?
An act of prying; a close and curious look.
Pry
/pɹaɪ/ name, noun, verb
name, noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: An act of prying; a close and curious look.
- Grammar: pry is listed as name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: backseat driver, bar, beam, beat the bushes.
- Useful contrasts: close, discretion, mind your own business.
- Usage evidence: Don't pry into my private life.
How to use "pry"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "pry" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "pry" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "pry" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "pry" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "pry" is acting as name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "backseat driver" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "pry", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 An act of prying; a close and curious look.
"With those beauties, scarce discern'd, / Kept with such sweet privacy, / That they seldom meet the eye / Of the little loves that fly / Round about with eager pry."
- 2 A tool for levering; a crowbar, a lever. East-Anglia, US
- 3 a heavy iron lever with one end forged into a wedge wordnet
- 4 A person who is very inquisitive or nosy; a busybody, a nosey parker.
Verb
- 1 To peer closely and curiously, especially at something closed or not public. intransitive
"[W]omen haue eagles eyes, / To prie euen to the heart, and why not you?"
- 2 To use leverage to open, raise, or widen (something); to prise or prize. transitive
""Oh! he's going home to Down East," said another; "so far eastward, you know, shippy, that they have to pry up the sun with a handspike.""
- 3 be nosey wordnet
- 4 To inquire into something that does not concern one; to be nosy; to snoop. figuratively, intransitive
"Watch thou, and wake when others be aſleepe, / To prie into the ſecrets of the State, […]"
- 5 Usually followed by out (of): to draw out or get (information, etc.) with effort. figuratively, transitive
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 to move or force, especially in an effort to get something open wordnet
- 7 To peer at (something) closely; also, to look into (a matter, etc.) thoroughly. obsolete, transitive
"The two ship's corporals went among the sailors by the names of Leggs and Pounce; […] Bland, the master-at-arms, ravished with their dexterity in prying out offenders, used to call them his two right hands."
- 8 make an uninvited or presumptuous inquiry wordnet
- 9 search or inquire in a meddlesome way wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"Don't pry into my private life."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "pry"?
Common synonyms include: backseat driver, bar, beam, beat the bushes, bend the eyes, boom.
How do you use "pry" in a sentence?
Don't pry into my private life.
How do you pronounce "pry"?
Pronounced /pɹaɪ/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
The verb is inherited from Middle English prien, pryen (“to look closely, peer into, pry, spy”) [and other forms], from Old English *prīwan, *prēowian (“to look narrowly, to squint at”), attested by Old English beprīwan, beprēwan (“to wink”); further etymology unknown, but probably akin to Old English *prēowot (“closing of the eyes”), attested only in combination – compare prēowthwīl (“blink or twinkling of an eye, moment”), princ (“a wink”): see prink. The noun is derived from the verb.
Etymology 2
The noun is probably a back-formation from prise, prize (“tool for levering, lever”), construed as the plural of pry. The verb is either derived from the noun, or is a back-formation from prise (“to force open with a lever”), construed as pries, the third-person singular present form of pry.
Etymology 3
* As an Irish surname, spelling variant of Prey, from Ó Préith, probably from na préith (“of the cattle-spoil”) (compare Latin praeda (“plunder, booty”)). * As a German surname, a spelling variant of Prey, from breu (“brew”); see brauen. Comparable to the surname Preyer.