From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englisheavesdropeaves‧drop /ˈiːvzdrɒp $ -drɑːp/ verb (eavesdropped, eavesdropping) [intransitive] LISTENto deliberately listen secretly to other people’s conversations → overhear There was Helena eavesdropping outside the door. —eavesdropper noun [countable]→ See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
eavesdrop• She wanted to ask what the Leighs were talking about, but did not want him to think she had eavesdropped.• In most cases, it is difficult to detect that some one is eavesdropping.• Then the baboon came home and I eavesdropped anxiously and she told him.• Caroline felt riveted to the floor, motionless, unwilling to consciously eavesdrop but tense with curiosity.• How did you know I was going? You've been eavesdropping, haven't you!• Most shocking was the charge that Morris had allowed her to eavesdrop on conversations with the White House.• I caught him eavesdropping on our conversation.• Sue was able to eavesdrop on them through the open window.• He and his assistants hung around shopping malls and city streets, eavesdropping on whoops and hoots.• Can he eavesdrop through a card, Jaq?• Hackers can eavesdrop using software that monitors packets sent over the network.Origin eavesdrop (1600-1700) eavesdropper “someone who stands close to a wall, where rainwater drops from the eaves, in order to listen secretly” 