espionage. Article #32. Vol 4, pg 561.
You can make anything sound sophisticated just by using a French word for it. Take the word “espionage”. When we describe it as “obtaining secret information by means of secret agents or monitoring devices”, it sounds pretty thrilling. But at its core, espionage is really just “spying on” someone which sounds far less impressive and which we all know to be just plain bad behavior.
Said another way, when James Bond does it, it’s espionage. When your little sister does it, it’s just plain spying.
“espionage.” Encyclopedia Britannica. 15th ed. 2010. Vol 4, pg 561.
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