pry

pry — 動詞

1. to take an unwanted interest in private details about another person's life or r

1.動詞不及物B2
釋義

打探

窺探他人私事

to take an unwanted interest in private details about another person's life or relationships

例句

Adina didn't mean to pry, but she overheard her neighbour arguing loudly on the phone.

Adina 無意打探，但她無意中聽到鄰居在電話上大聲爭吵。

pry (without object, implying 'into someone's affairs')

Noor got upset when her coworker kept prying into her personal finances.

同事一直打探 Noor 的個人財務狀況，讓她很不高興。

pry into + personal / private matters

同義詞
  • snoop

    implies physically looking through someone's things, while 'pry' covers asking questions too

  • meddle

    focuses on interfering in someone's affairs rather than just finding out information

  • nose around

    informal; suggests moving around a place looking for secrets

反義詞

文法句型

pry into + noun phrase

pry (without object)

be prying + into + noun phrase

用法筆記

Often used with 'into' followed by a noun phrase that names the private matter. Common in the progressive aspect ('You're prying!'). This sense is always negative — it implies the person asking has no right to know.

常見錯誤

❌She pried his secret.
✅She pried into his secret.
💡'pry' in this sense is intransitive and needs 'into' before the object.

2. to force something to move, rise, or become open by pushing hard with a tool or

2.動詞及物B2
釋義

撬開

用工具強行打開或移動

to force something to move, rise, or become open by pushing hard with a tool or your hands

例句

Ramón used a screwdriver to pry the lid off the paint can.

Ramón 用螺絲起子把油漆罐的蓋子撬開。

pry + object + off

Wei pried the old floorboards up with a crowbar before installing new tiles.

Wei 用鐵撬把舊地板撬起來，然後鋪上新磁磚。

pry + object + up

同義詞
  • lever

    slightly more formal; can be used both as verb and noun

  • prize

    British spelling variant of this sense of 'pry'

  • force open

    emphasises the effort rather than the tool used

反義詞
  • seal

    to close or fasten something firmly

  • fasten

    to close or attach securely

文法句型

pry + object + open

pry + object + off

pry + object + up

pry + object + out of + noun phrase

pry + object + from + noun phrase

用法筆記

The object is always something fixed or stuck that resists movement. Direction words (open, off, up, out) are required to show the result of the force. This sense is occasionally spelled 'prize' in British English.

常見錯誤

❌He pried the lid.
✅He pried the lid off.
💡Add a direction word (off, open, up) to show the result of the force.

pry — 名詞