Pry

6 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Pry \Pry\, n. [Corrupted fr. prize a lever. See {Prize}, n.]
     A lever; also, leverage. [Local, U. S. & Eng.]
     [1913 Webster]
  
     {Pry pole}, the pole which forms the prop of a hoisting gin,
        and stands facing the windlass.


        [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Pry \Pry\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Pried}; p. pr. & vb. n.
     {Prying}.]
     To raise or move, or attempt to raise or move, with a pry or
     lever; to prize. [Local, U. S. & Eng.]
     [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Pry \Pry\, v. i. [OE. prien. Cf. {Peer} to peep.]
     To peep narrowly; to gaze; to inspect closely; to attempt to
     discover something by a scrutinizing curiosity; -- often
     implying reproach. " To pry upon the stars." --Chaucer.
     [1913 Webster]
  
           Watch thou and wake when others be asleep,
           To pry into the secrets of the state.    --Shak.
     [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Pry \Pry\, n.
     Curious inspection; impertinent peeping.
     [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  pry
       n : a heavy iron lever with one end forged into a wedge [syn: {crowbar},
            {wrecking bar}, {pry bar}]
       v 1: to move or force, especially in an effort to get something
            open; "The burglar jimmied the lock", "Raccoons managed
            to pry the lid off the garbage pail" [syn: {prise}, {prize},
             {lever}, {jimmy}]
       2: be nosey; "Don't pry into my personal matters!"
       3: search or inquire in a meddlesome way; "This guy is always
          nosing around the office" [syn: {nose}, {poke}]
       4: make an uninvited or presumptuous inquiry; "They pried the
          information out of him" [syn: {prise}]
       [also: {pried}]

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

  127 Moby Thesaurus words for "pry":
     Paul Pry, Paul-Pry, Peeping Tom, backseat driver, bar, beam,
     beat the bushes, bend the eyes, boom, burrow, busybody, cant hook,
     claw bar, crank, crow, crowbar, delve, delve into, dig, dig into,
     direct the eyes, disengage, disjoin, divide, eavesdropper, elevate,
     explore, fathom, fool with, forage, frisk, fulcrumage,
     get a foothold, get leverage, go into, go through, gossip,
     handspike, hoist, hunt, indagate, inquirer, inquisitive,
     inquisitor, intermeddle, intermeddler, investigate, iron crow,
     jimmy, kibitz, kibitzer, lever, leverage, lift, limb, look,
     look around, look into, look round, look through, marlinespike,
     meddle, meddle with, meddler, mess with, monkey with, mouse, nose,
     nose around, nosy Parker, outrigger, peavey, pedal, peek, peep,
     peer, peer into, pick up, pinch bar, play peekaboo, plumb, poke,
     poke around, poke into, prier, prize, probe, pry into, querier,
     querist, questioner, quidnunc, raise, rear, research, ripping bar,
     root, rubberneck, rubbernecker, scopophiliac, search, search into,
     search through, separate, sift, sightseer, smell around, snook,
     snoop, snooper, sound, spar, spy, take a peep, take up,
     tamper with, treadle, turn, twist, uphold, uplift, upraise, uprear,
     voyeur, wedge, wrecking bar, yenta