Library / English Dictionary

PRY

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

Irregular inflected form: pried   

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

A heavy iron lever with one end forged into a wedge

Synonyms:

crowbar; pry; pry bar; wrecking bar

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("pry" is a kind of...):

lever (a rigid bar pivoted about a fulcrum)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "pry"):

jim crow (a crowbar fitted with a claw for pulling nails)

jemmy; jimmy (a short crowbar)

Derivation:

pry (to move or force, especially in an effort to get something open)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Be nosey

Example:

Don't pry into my personal matters!

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Hypernyms (to "pry" is one way to...):

ask; enquire; inquire (address a question to and expect an answer from)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s PP

Derivation:

prying (offensive inquisitiveness)

Sense 2

Meaning:

To move or force, especially in an effort to get something open

Example:

Raccoons managed to pry the lid off the garbage pail

Synonyms:

jimmy; lever; prise; prize; pry

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "pry" is one way to...):

open; open up (cause to open or to become open)

"Pry" entails doing...:

loose; loosen (make loose or looser)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s something PP

Derivation:

pry (a heavy iron lever with one end forged into a wedge)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Make an uninvited or presumptuous inquiry

Example:

They pried the information out of him

Synonyms:

prise; pry

Classified under:

Verbs of sewing, baking, painting, performing

Hypernyms (to "pry" is one way to...):

extort; wring from (get or cause to become in a difficult or laborious manner)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

prying (offensive inquisitiveness)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Search or inquire in a meddlesome way

Example:

This guy is always nosing around the office

Synonyms:

horn in; intrude; nose; poke; pry

Classified under:

Verbs of seeing, hearing, feeling

Hypernyms (to "pry" is one way to...):

look; search (search or seek)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s PP

Derivation:

prying (offensive inquisitiveness)

Credits

 Context examples: 

They reassured him countless times; but he could not believe them, and pried cunningly about the lazarette to see with his own eyes.

(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)

Where your calling is more open to criticism is when you pry into the secrets of private individuals, when you rake up family matters which are better hidden, and when you incidentally waste the time of men who are more busy than yourself.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

"You'll have to get a pry," Matt counselled.

(White Fang, by Jack London)

If you are interviewing for a new position, you will need to keep all elements secret and away from prying eyes.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)

Next I pried the primer, or cap, from the shell, and laid it on the rock, in the midst of the scattered powder.

(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)

Ah, be silent, said the hostess, so many prying persons have already lost their lives, it would be a pity and a shame if such beautiful eyes as these should never see the daylight again.

(Fairy Tales, by The Brothers Grimm)

By your dress you should be one of those cursed clerks who overrun the land like vile rats, poking and prying into other men's concerns, too caitiff to fight and too lazy to work.

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

This accomplished, he pried gently and carefully, loosening the jaws a bit at a time, while Matt, a bit at a time, extricated White Fang's mangled neck.

(White Fang, by Jack London)

You seem to have a secret, and no one, no matter how they try, will be able to pry it out of you.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)

In the winter, when the earth is frozen hard, they are obliged to stay below and cannot work their way through; but now, when the sun has thawed and warmed the earth, they break through it, and come out to pry and steal; and what once gets into their hands, and in their caves, does not easily see daylight again.

(Fairy Tales, by The Brothers Grimm)