Past tense of espy
regular verb
The past tense of espy is espied. The past participle is also espied.
Forms of espy
| Base form (V1) | espy /ɪˈspaɪ/ |
|---|---|
| Past tense (V2) | espied |
| Past participle (V3) | espied |
| Present participle | espying |
| Third person singular | espies /ɪˈspaɪz/ |
Espied in a sentence
- Thou canst do thy note; that have I espied.1962, Arthur C. Cawley, Everyman, and Medieval Miracle Plays, page 125. From the entry note
- Examining it with binoculars, before entering, as it was quite open, I espied another of these elusive water-witches upon its nest.1914, Arthur A Allen, "At home with a Hell-Diver". in Bird-Lore, volume XVI, number 4. From the entry water-witch
- As she ran past the throne she espied the King’s crown still hanging to one of the gold knobs.1911, Sidford F[rederick] Hamp, “Lobsterneck”, in Coco Bolo: King of the Floating Islands, Boston, Mass.: Richard G. Badger, →OCLC, page 95. From the entry princy
- I . . . espied a small cave, excellent suited to our defence and where two determined men might hold in check a whole army.1921, Jeffery Farnol, chapter 30, in Martin Conisby's Vengeance. From the entry in check
Meaning of espy
- verb To find out or observe (someone or something, especially if not easy to see) by spying or looking; to catch sight of; to see; to spot.
- verb To see (someone or something) without foreplanning or unexpectedly.
- verb To observe (someone or something) as a spy; also, to examine or observe (someone or something) carefully; or to look out or watch for.
Questions about the past tense of espy
- What is the past tense of espy?
- The past tense of espy is espied.
- What is the past participle of espy?
- The past participle of espy is espied.
- Is espy a regular or irregular verb?
- Espy is a regular verb: its past tense changes -y to -ied.
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: espy (page history and authors) and the entries of its forms. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws left out forms marked obsolete, archaic, rare or dialectal and added the examples. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Cite this page: “Past tense of espy.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/past-tense/espy. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.