Prey

Pronunciation

• enPR: prā, IPA: /pɹeɪ/
• Rhymes: -eɪ
• Homophones: pray

Origin

From Middle English, from Old French preie, one of the variants of proie, from Latin praeda. Compare predator.

Full definition of prey

Noun

1. (archaic) Anything, as goods, etc., taken or got by violence; anything taken by force from an enemy in war; spoil; booty; plunder.
• Bible, Numbers xxxi. 12And they brought the captives, and the prey, and the spoil, unto Moses, and Eleazar the priest.
2. That which is or may be seized by animals or birds to be devoured; hence, a person given up as a victim.
• DrydenAlready sees herself the monster's prey.
3. A living thing that is eaten by another living thing.
• Bible, Job iv. iiThe old lion perisheth for lack of prey.
• 2013, William E. Conner, An Acoustic Arms Race, Nonetheless, some insect prey take advantage of clutter by hiding in it. Earless ghost swift moths become “invisible” to echolocating bats by forming mating clusters close (less than half a meter) above vegetation and effectively blending into the clutter of echoes that the bat receives from the leaves and stems around them.
4. The rabbit was eaten by the coyote, so the rabbit is the coyote's prey.
5. The act of devouring other creatures; ravage.
• ShakespeareHog in sloth, fox in stealth, ... lion in prey.
6. The victim of a disease.

Verb

1. (with on) To victimize, hunt, attack or plunder.
2. (with on) To devour.
3. (with on) To exert harmful influence.

Derived terms

• prey on

Anagrams

• pyre, rype