Read along with the three podcasts, or open the full dictionary entry for Pry for the definition, Arabic meaning, synonyms and example sentences.
Narrator: Today's word is "Pry" — verb, pronounced /praɪ/, with the stress on "pry".
Narrator: To pry is to inquire too closely into someone's private affairs, or to force something open.
Narrator: In plain English, to pry is to be nosy — asking questions you shouldn't, or levering something open that is shut.
Narrator: It comes from the Old French preier, meaning to ask, and is related to the word pray, both from the Latin precari, meaning to entreat.
Narrator: "To pry into someone's life" describes asking nosy questions about things that are none of your business.
Narrator: It differs from ask because pry implies being nosy and intrusive, whereas ask is neutral.
Narrator: "To pry open a tin" is a physical sense meaning to lever something open with a tool.
Narrator: Social etiquette, detective work, DIY and journalism all rely on the word pry.
Narrator: So remember: to pry is to be nosy or to force open, from the Old French for to ask.
Speaker A: Is prying just asking questions?
Speaker B: Nosy questions! PRY comes from the Old French preier, to ask, related to pray, but it means inquiring too closely into private matters.
Speaker A: So it's the same as snooping?
Speaker B: Very close — prying is being too curious!
Speaker A: Example sentences?
Speaker B: "Don't pry into my diary"; "she pried open the paint tin"; "the reporter pried for details" — a secret, a tin and a story.
Speaker A: Common mistakes?
Speaker B: Don't confuse pry with prize in British English, because pry means to be nosy or lever open, while prize as a verb means to value highly.
Speaker A: Close relatives?
Speaker B: "Snoop" the nosy cousin, "lever" the physical twin, "meddle" the interfering alternative. The word keeps its inquisitive charm!
Speaker B: Let's use "pry" in AI prompts — useful for privacy-awareness tools and detective-story generators.
Speaker A: So a prompt could frame a warning?
Speaker B: Right. For a privacy app, you'd write:
Prompt: Write a short warning for teenagers about apps that pry into personal data, naming two settings to check.
Speaker A: How about a story tool?
Speaker B: Ask the model to build tension:
Prompt: Draft a paragraph in which a neighbour pries into a mysterious family's routine, describing one overheard conversation.
Speaker A: Could it help with a DIY bot?
Speaker B: Yes, you can frame a task:
Prompt: Summarise in two sentences how to safely pry up a floorboard without damaging it, naming one tool.
Speaker A: One more?
Speaker B: For an etiquette chatbot, try this:
Prompt: Write a short guide on how to politely decline when relatives pry about wedding plans, suggesting one deflecting phrase.
Pry — meaning in Arabic & definition More P courses GL Dictionary