spy satellite
11
4.4
- noun
- /spaɪ ˈsætəˌlaɪt/
- Specialized
:
satélite espía
- The military used data from spy satellites to plan their next operation.
- U.S. spy satellites
- secret spy satellites
- military spy satellites
These were bursts of gamma radiation seen first by spy satellites that were designed to look for nuclear tests.
- These were bursts of gamma radiation seen first by spy satellites that were designed to look for nuclear tests.
Examples
-
On January 21, 2008, India launched a closely guarded Israeli-built radar spy satellite to begin gathering valuable intelligence data.
Academic text (2013) -
The OI now houses some 1,200 declassified spy satellite images, one of the largest collections in the world alongside the U.S. Geological Survey.
Academic text (2010) -
These were taken by one of our spy satellites three days ago.
-
Our spy satellites recorded those images.
-
Now, these suits control every spy satellite in the sky.
-
60% of all spy satellites the US government has placed in space are pointed at the US.
Blog text (30) -
A spy satellite photographed it by mistake.
-
For example, in November 1998, Japan decided to acquire spy satellites for the first time.
Academic text (2001) -
In 1980, an American spy satellite detected the makings of a larger, 5-MW nuclear reactor under construction in the Yongbyon vicinity.
Academic text (2018) -
spy satellites monitor activities in regions of interest around the globe.
How Capable
- Specialized
11
4.4
- Specialized
4
3.5
- Specialized
1
4.4
- Specialized
31
4.0
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a satellite equipped to observe or gather intelligence' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'spy' (one who collects secret information) with 'satellite' (an orbital spacecraft); the first noun simply specifies purpose/agent of the second. This noun–noun compositional pattern is common and cross-linguistically regular, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
The name spy satellite is made by putting together spy (a person who watches secretly) and satellite (a machine that flies high above Earth), so the image is a secret watcher floating in space. That's why spy satellite means 'a satellite that watches and gathers secret or military information'.