Snooping
/ˈsnuːpɪŋ/
Definitions
To secretly look for information about someone or something.
/ˈsnuːpɪŋ/
To secretly investigate or look around in a person's belongings or affairs, typically in an intrusive way.
My little sister was caught snooping in my diary.
💡 Simply: Imagine you're trying to find out a secret, like what presents your friend got for their birthday. Snooping is like sneaking around to try and find out before you're supposed to!
👶 For kids: Looking at or touching things that don't belong to you to find out secrets.
More Examples
The detective was snooping around the crime scene for clues.
He admitted to snooping on his neighbor's conversations.
Companies often monitor employee emails to prevent snooping and data breaches.
How It's Used
"She was caught snooping through her brother's emails."
"Be careful of hackers snooping on your internet activity."
Idioms & expressions
snoop around
To look around a place in a casual way, often to find something or satisfy one's curiosity.
"I like to snoop around antique shops when I'm traveling."
From the verb "snoop," of uncertain origin, possibly related to Dutch "snoepen" (to pry). The -ing suffix indicates the continuous action.
The verb 'snoop' gained popularity in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, often associated with private investigators and detectives.
Memory tip
Think of a detective with a magnifying glass, secretly observing and looking for clues.