espion
/ɛs.pjɔ̃/masculine
The French word for spy is espion.
espion is the most common and standard word used to describe a person who secretly watches others. If you are referring specifically to intelligence agents, you might use agent de renseignement.
Meaning: person who secretly watches (noun)
Which one should you use?
espion is the noun used to refer to the person, whereas the related verb espionner refers to the act of spying.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The masculine singular form is espion. The feminine form for a female spy is espionne, and the plural form is espions. Regarding the related verb espionner, the third-person plural conjugation is espionnent.
How do you pronounce it?
The word has two syllables and is pronounced /ɛs.pjɔ̃/.
Did you know?
- In historical French contexts, a mouche (literally 'fly') was a type of spy who eavesdropped on conversations for the police or the crown.
- The 's' in espion was actually silent for several centuries after the 13th century. It was only brought back into pronunciation relatively recently because of the influence of the Italian word spione.
- While espion is the standard word, the phrase faire le guet describes the act of keeping watch or spying on a location, though it is more about vigilance than secrecy.
Examples in context
- Tom est un espion.Tom is a spy.This sentence is useful for identifying someone as an espion.Tatoeba #5579300 by Aiji, translation #2272877 by CK
- Je ne suis pas un espion.I'm not a spy.This sentence is useful for denying that one is an espion.Tatoeba #10666676 by Aiji, translation #2549705 by CK
- Tu n'es pas un espion, si ?You aren't a spy, are you?This sentence is useful for questioning if someone is an espion.Tatoeba #480607 by sacredceltic, translation #16634 by saeb
- Les agents secrets ont réussi à déjouer une attaque terroriste.The secret agents managed to thwart a terrorist attack.
- Les agents de renseignement ont infiltré l'organisation criminelle pour obtenir des informations vitales.The intelligence agents infiltrated the criminal organization to gather vital information.
- Je pense que le voisin est un espion. Il se comporte très étrangement.I think the neighbor is a spy. He behaves very strangely.
- 58 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Manon and Lucas are discussing a movie plot.
- ManonLe personnage principal est un espion.The main character is a spy.
- LucasIl travaille pour quel pays ?Which country does he work for?
- ManonC'est un espion international.He is an international spy.
- LucasL'histoire a l'air passionnante.The story sounds exciting.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “spy” translations and entries espion, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries espion, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
