spycraft en · NOUN
Etymology
Etymology tree English spy Proto-Germanic *krafjaną Proto-Indo-European *-tus Proto-Germanic *-þuz Proto-Germanic *kraftuz Proto-West Germanic *kraftu Old English cræft Old English -cræft Middle English -craft English -craft English spycraft From spy + -craft.
Meanings
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(uncountable) The skills and techniques employed by spies.
During the hunt for Osama bin Laden in 2011, CIA operatives in Pakistan posed as aid workers and even faked an immunization campaign. To many of my Muslim friends, this CIA spycraft is no different from what covert Christian missionaries do.
2016 August 17, Jeremy Courtney, “Three arguments against covert Christian ‘spycraft’”, in CNN, archived from the original on 28 Mar 2017: