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prey
[prey]
noun
an animal hunted or seized for food, especially by a carnivorous animal.
a person or thing that is the victim of an enemy, a swindler, a disease, etc.
a con man looking for his next prey.
Synonyms: , ,the action or habit of preying.
a beast of prey.
Archaic.booty or plunder.
verb (used without object)
to seize and devour prey, as an animal does (usually followed by on orupon ).
Foxes prey on rabbits.
to make raids or attacks for booty or plunder.
The Vikings preyed on coastal settlements.
to exert a harmful or destructive influence.
His worries preyed upon his mind.
to victimize another or others (usually followed by on orupon ).
loan sharks that prey upon poor people.
prey
/ ɪ /
noun
an animal hunted or captured by another for food
a person or thing that becomes the victim of a hostile person, influence, etc
an animal that preys on others for food
a bird that preys on others for food
an archaic word for booty 1
verb
to hunt or seize food by killing other animals
to make a victim (of others), as by profiting at their expense
to exert a depressing or obsessive effect (on the mind, spirits, etc); weigh heavily (upon)
Other 51Թ Forms
- preyer noun
- unpreying adjective
- ˈ noun
51Թ History and Origins
Origin of prey1
51Թ History and Origins
Origin of prey1
Idioms and Phrases
fall prey (to), to be victimized, harmed, or killed: fall prey to internet scams.
chickens that fell prey to a hawk;
fall prey to internet scams.
Example Sentences
Flanagan preys on the audience’s nostalgia and our desperate search for something heartwarming, wherever we can find it.
The mostly white moths stood out in the sooty environment and became easy prey for predators.
“He is a mix between a bird of prey, like a peregrine falcon, with extremely streamlined shapes — of course a feline but also a Mexican salamander called an axolotl,” Otto says.
“It’s the type of crime that preys upon the most needy and desperate people,” Lopez said, adding that few places outside of Colorado have taken meaningful steps to crack down on immigration-related abuses.
Australia all-rounder Beau Webster said his side will look to capitalise on any signs that South Africa's reputation as chokers is preying on their minds.
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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