Definition of prey in English:

prey

noun preɪpreɪ

mass noun

1An animal that is hunted and killed by another for food.
被捕食的动物；捕获物
the kestrel pounced on its prey
Example sentencesExamples
- Insects feeding on the blood of higher animals locate their prey by following the high CO2 gradient produced by its breath.
- Vulnerability, habitat selection, or other variables may affect where predators kill prey.
- Many animals that are prey, such as rabbits and deer, have much less binocular vision.
- Pythons are constrictors, meaning they rely on strength, not venom, to kill their prey.
- Many snakes also use their bending skills to kill their prey by coiling tightly around them.
- The calving lures many animals of prey, including lions and spotted hyena.
- Think of a carnivore animal evolving powerful jaws to catch and kill its prey.
- Animals have the vegetable kingdom for their nourishment, and within the animal kingdom again every animal is the prey and food of some other.
- These birds, endemic in southern Africa, are obligate scavengers, which means they are unable to kill their own prey as eagles or hawks do.
- Giant condors scavenged on the remains of prey killed by predators such as the American lion and sabre-toothed cats.
- Venoms immobilise and kill their prey by blocking certain ‘targets’ within the body.
- Spotted hyenas kill their own prey more often than they scavenge.
- Rodents are prey for avian, reptilian, and mammalian predators.
- Perhaps this shows us another reason for fear of spiders - it is the only other creature that sets traps and toys with its prey before killing it.
- I would also like to point out that foxes prey on rabbits and other small animals for food, which is a natural instinct, but humans are not natural predators to the fox.
- The enzymes and toxins in scorpion venom are used by the arachnid to paralyse its prey and digest its food.
- Carnivora have long teeth and claws for holding and killing prey; vegetarian animals have short teeth and no claws.
- To assure the bugs have enough food if insect prey is scarce, place some apple slices in the nursery.
- She owned the wild animals, both prey and predators, and looked after them.
- Lions when deprived of their usual prey occasionally attack domestic animals and even human beings.
Synonyms
quarry, game, kill
1. 1.1 A person who is easily deceived or harmed.
  he was easy prey for the two con men
  他总是轻易上那两个骗子的当。
  Example sentencesExamples
  A lot of youth are illiterate and unemployed and easy prey.
  That the enemy had not singled Winfred out to be easy prey was nothing short of pure fortune, especially with the battle still raging before his eyes.
  They usually fed along the alley ways, since they were highways for the city's riffraff and homeless - usually easy prey.
  Benson Osawe, academic affairs officer at the university's student union, said students were often seen as easy prey.
  Call it greed, ignorance or gullibility, some people will always be the ‘marks’ - easy prey for the confidence tricksters.
  Security-shy residents are allowing themselves to become easy prey for burglars.
  In this hot, desert-like mountain landscape I too would be easy prey.
  Decadent, corrupt nobles were always easy prey for barbarians and rebels.
  Should we fumble, should we fall in the middle of the road, we will become easy prey.
  They deserve a lot of credit for the way they compete each week, knowing that most teams regard them as easy prey.
  The carnival regularly attracts armies of purse snatchers and pickpockets who find easy prey among the revellers.
  As more visitors come to centres like Newry, unfortunately so too do criminals on the lookout for easy prey.
  In addition, people who were with drawing money from banks were easy prey for robbers.
  There wasn't much Joe enjoyed more than baiting his brothers and Adam, with his more volatile temper, was easy prey.
  The region's 70,000-strong student population is the largest in the country and criminals often see them as easy prey.
  He had made himself easy prey, since he had kicked off his shoes.
  If we kept you on, the employee who had cost us so much, we would look like a laughing stock, and we'd also be easy prey for rival businesses.
  When I became disoriented I knew I was easy prey for her lioness ways.
  The niggling doubts surrounding his decision made so long ago fashioned him as easy prey for Jennifer's plan.
  That makes them easy prey for insurance crooks who promise to recoup more than a policy is worth - for a fee - then disappear.
  Synonyms
  victim, target, dupe, fool, innocent, gull
  informal sucker, soft/easy touch, pushover, chump
  British informal muggins, charlie
  North American informal patsy, sap, schlemiel, pigeon, mark
  Australian/New Zealand informal dill
  British informal, dated juggins
2archaic Plunder or (in biblical use) a prize.
〈古〉掠夺品，（《圣经》用语）战利品

verb preɪpreɪ

[no object]prey on/upon

1Hunt and kill for food.
捕食
small birds that prey on insect pests
捕食害虫的小鸟。
Example sentencesExamples
- Several species of insects and mites prey on spider mites.
- Garbage will attract gulls and mammals that prey upon nesting birds.
- Eastern Screech-Owls are known to prey on a variety of insects, small birds, and small mammals.
- A beneficial insect is usually defined by the gardener as one that preys on insects that can damage plants of value to that very same gardener.
- A biologist at the University of Arizona, Rosen studies what insects and fish prey on bullfrog tadpoles.
- Crows prey on young ducklings while foxes kill the breeding stock if or when the opportunity arises.
- As much as I am appalled at what cats do to defenceless animals, I could never be cruel to them, even when they invade my garden to prey on the birds that drop in for food and water.
- He gets about $240 a year but he insists it's not enough, especially when lions prey on his cattle.
- Fire ants prey on karst invertebrates and the surface community food base upon which the karst species depend.
- Considered pests that prey on pets and livestock, the eagles have been hunted down by residents.
- The worker ants prey on other insects and can chew holes in fabrics, plastics and rubber goods, including the insulation of telephone or electrical wires.
- In Scotland we have no indigenous crayfish but signal crayfish, which grow to over 20 cm, are omnivores and can prey on small fish and fish eggs.
- Those stages for the tree are then linked to the various pests that prey on apple trees and fruits.
- Lacewings are beneficial insects which prey on bugs that damage food crops.
- Real vampire bats prey on cattle and horses, take tiny quantities of blood and are dangerous only insofar as they sometimes carry bovine tuberculosis and rabies.
- Foxes as predators prey on lambs and chickens and kill native small marsupials and rodents.
- These hordes of hungry insects will prey on many destructive garden bugs.
- With plenty of smaller birds and rabbits to prey on, all around the island kestrels hover, buzzards glide and peregrine falcons swoop.
- In Espanola's Gardner Bay, a hungry ocean shark, come to prey on young sea lion pups, chased a group of snorkelers onto the rocks.
- The exotic spiders, which are at first of normal size, slowly start to grow bigger and burst out of their confines to prey on the township population.
Synonyms
hunt, catch, seize
eat, devour, feed on, live on, live off
1. 1.1 Take advantage of or harm.
  利用；剥削；伤害
  this is a mean type of theft by ruthless people preying on the elderly
  这是无情之徒利用老人弱势的一种卑鄙偷窃。
  Example sentencesExamples
  Cruel doorstep cheats who prey on elderly people claim the number one spot on a damning ‘top five’ list of the worst swindlers, conmen and thieves.
  James Player believes the problem of conmen preying on the elderly and vulnerable could even be more serious than the figures reveal - because many who have been targeted are ashamed by having been conned so easily and do not come forward.
  An initiative to stop bogus callers preying on elderly victims has been launched in Basildon today.
  A man who preyed on the elderly by burgling residential care homes in his own village faces a jail term.
  Cold-hearted door-to-door salesmen are preying on the elderly and conning them into buying over-priced funerals.
  Rogue traders who prey on York's elderly residents could face court as city councillors step up their campaign against doorstep crime.
  There are few offenders more despicable than criminals who prey on the elderly and infirm.
  To take advantage of the hopeless is truly despicable, but to prey on the helpless, whether directly or indirectly, is criminal.
  Her regular trip to the Post Office used to be a nightmare ordeal as she walked streets plagued by drug addicts and petty crooks, all prepared to prey on the elderly.
  Gardaí believe he was one of the leaders of a group of Traveller families who prey on elderly people living alone in remote, rural parts of the west of Ireland.
  People who prey on elderly women ought to be locked up forever.
  These are artist's impressions of two men who preyed on elderly people living in Ludgershall.
  Two prolific burglars who preyed on elderly people by claiming to be looking for a lost kitten have been jailed.
  The criminals who prey on the elderly are the lowest of the low - contemptible cowards whose targets are the frail and solitary.
  Police have warned the public to be on their guard for two men posing as policemen who prey on elderly victims in their homes.
  Cowboys and cold callers who prey on York and North Yorkshire's elderly and vulnerable could have the door shut in their face if a Parliamentary bill becomes law.
  Burglars have been preying on elderly residents by pretending to be from the water board to get into their homes.
  Three Cumbrian building societies have joined forces to combat cruel fraudsters who prey on the elderly and vulnerable.
  A scheme to take on cowboy builders who prey on elderly people was launched by Sutton and Cheam MP Paul Burstow last week.
  Ruthless thieves are preying on the elderly outside charity and discount shops in Swindon.
  Synonyms
  exploit, victimize, molest, pick on, intimidate, harass, hound, take advantage of
  trick, swindle, cheat, hoodwink, fleece
  attack, terrorize
  blackmail, bleed
  informal con
2. 1.2 Cause constant distress to.
  折磨；损害；使痛苦；使烦恼
  the problem had begun to prey on my mind
  这个问题已经开始让我心烦意乱。
  Example sentencesExamples
  Shortly after Hamilton's discovery of the quaternions his personal life started to prey on his mind again.
  You've been waiting in the wings since 2001, but you haven't yet cemented your spot - does that prey on your mind?
  When I'm between jobs, the issue of money tends to prey on my mind.
  Since it had been mentioned to him on the dock, the thought that pirates had attacked her ship preyed constantly on his mind.
  In the past, the bigger the tournament, the more the magnitude of a victory seemed to prey on her mind.
  Although he was delighted, finally, to learn who his natural mother was, it was not something that had constantly preyed on his mind.
  After the couple's return from the holiday isle, one thing continued to prey on their mind.
  As he grew up he refused to allow the horrific accident to prey on his mind and despite his disability he was able to do well at primary and elementary school.
  Synonyms
  oppress, weigh on, weigh heavily on, lie heavy on, burden, be a burden on/to, hang over, gnaw at
  trouble, worry, beset, disturb, depress, distress, haunt, nag, torment, plague, obsess, take over, take control of

Phrases

fall prey to (also be or become prey to)

1Be hunted and killed by (an animal)
被…捕食
small rodents fell prey to domestic cats
小啮齿动物成为家猫的猎物。
Example sentencesExamples
- Eggs and hatchlings are the most vulnerable, falling prey to insects, crustaceans, mollusks, small mammals, birds, other reptiles, and various fishes.
- Many fall prey to poachers who kill them for meat and steal eggs from the corpses to sell as aphrodisiacs.
- In Northeast China, a Siberian tiger was recently found killed after it fell prey to a trap originally set by the locals for boars.
1. 1.1Be vulnerable to or overcome by.
  受…伤害；被…战胜
  he would often fall prey to melancholy
  他常常受到忧伤的折磨。
  the settlers become prey to nameless fears
  移民受到莫名恐惧的折磨。
  Example sentencesExamples
  Though not an arborist, I knew that something had to be done to improve the health of our forest, and it had to be done quickly before the bulk of our trees fell prey to disease or drought.
  In the absence of civic or infrastructure development, people in Sittilingi, Tamil Nadu, fell prey to numerous preventable diseases.
  But Marcia fell prey to the cancer that would ultimately kill her.
  I just fell prey to a feeling of having lost something.
  Economic actors, sage and careful in other things, can in some circumstances fall prey to what Frank calls ‘luxury fever.’
  Marcus Davey, defending, said his client was honest about what happened, saying he simply fell prey to temptation.
  Still others were too aged for the hard work of building huts, in addition to which they easily fell prey to the tropical fevers and other diseases spread by the mosquitoes and the brackish water that was the settlers' only supply.
  Whether or not he formed political opinions on his own, or simply fell prey to the rhetoric of more intelligent people, remains to be seen, although even his loving wife accused him of being extremely naive at times.
  I was at that time subject to normal adolescent laziness, though it was not until much later that I fell prey to the chronic indolence which has caused my lifetime's achievements to have been fairly unremarkable.
  I think that she fell prey to someone much more powerful and more cunning than she was and believed everything he said hook, line, and sinker, and she's a victim of crime, the way I see it.
  Synonyms
  succumb to, be overcome by, be overwhelmed by

Derivatives

preyer

noun

The great horned owl is the only reliable preyer upon skunks.
Example sentencesExamples
- The man-dog is preyer; the rabbit is prey.

Origin

Middle English (also denoting plunder taken in war): the noun from Old French preie, from Latin praeda 'booty', the verb from Old French preier, based on Latin praedari 'seize as plunder', from praeda.

prison from Old English:
This comes via Old French from Latin prehendere ‘to seize’. Prehendere is a rich source of English words, being found, amongst many, in apprehend (late 16th century), comprehend (late 16th century); prehensile (late 18th century); and reprehensible (Late Middle English). A shortening of prehendere lies behind praedari ‘plunder’ and praeda ‘booty’, which lie behind depredation (Late Middle English); predatory [L16]; and prey (Middle English).

Rhymes

affray, agley, aka, allay, Angers, A-OK, appellation contrôlée, array, assay, astray, au fait, auto-da-fé, away, aweigh, aye, bay, belay, betray, bey, Bombay, Bordet, boulevardier, bouquet, brae, bray, café au lait, Carné, cassoulet, Cathay, chassé, chevet, chez, chiné, clay, convey, Cray, crème brûlée, crudités, cuvée, cy-pres, day, decay, deejay, dégagé, distinguée, downplay, dray, Dufay, Dushanbe, eh, embay, engagé, essay, everyday, faraway, fay, fey, flay, fray, Frey, fromage frais, gainsay, Gaye, Genet, giclee, gilet, glissé, gray, grey, halfway, hay, heigh, hey, hooray, Hubei, Hué, hurray, inveigh, jay, jeunesse dorée, José, Kay, Kaye, Klee, Kray, Lae, lay, lei, Littré, Lough Neagh, lwei, Mae, maguey, Malay, Mallarmé, Mandalay, Marseilles, may, midday, midway, mislay, misplay, Monterrey, Na-Dene, nay, né, née, neigh, Ney, noway, obey, O'Dea, okay, olé, outlay, outplay, outstay, outweigh, oyez, part-way, pay, Pei, per se, pince-nez, play, portray, pray, purvey, qua, Quai d'Orsay, Rae, rangé, ray, re, reflet, relevé, roman-à-clef, Santa Fé, say, sei, Shar Pei, shay, slay, sleigh, sley, spae, spay, Spey, splay, spray, stay, straightaway, straightway, strathspey, stray, Sui, survey, sway, Taipei, Tay, they, today, tokay, Torbay, Tournai, trait, tray, trey, two-way, ukiyo-e, underlay, way, waylay, Wei, weigh, wey, Whangarei, whey, yea

Definition of prey in US English:

prey

nounprāpreɪ

1An animal that is hunted and killed by another for food.
被捕食的动物；捕获物
the kestrel is ready to pounce on unsuspecting prey
红隼准备扑向毫无戒备的猎物。
Example sentencesExamples
- Spotted hyenas kill their own prey more often than they scavenge.
- Perhaps this shows us another reason for fear of spiders - it is the only other creature that sets traps and toys with its prey before killing it.
- These birds, endemic in southern Africa, are obligate scavengers, which means they are unable to kill their own prey as eagles or hawks do.
- To assure the bugs have enough food if insect prey is scarce, place some apple slices in the nursery.
- Think of a carnivore animal evolving powerful jaws to catch and kill its prey.
- Insects feeding on the blood of higher animals locate their prey by following the high CO2 gradient produced by its breath.
- Many snakes also use their bending skills to kill their prey by coiling tightly around them.
- Carnivora have long teeth and claws for holding and killing prey; vegetarian animals have short teeth and no claws.
- Lions when deprived of their usual prey occasionally attack domestic animals and even human beings.
- Many animals that are prey, such as rabbits and deer, have much less binocular vision.
- The enzymes and toxins in scorpion venom are used by the arachnid to paralyse its prey and digest its food.
- Vulnerability, habitat selection, or other variables may affect where predators kill prey.
- Pythons are constrictors, meaning they rely on strength, not venom, to kill their prey.
- Venoms immobilise and kill their prey by blocking certain ‘targets’ within the body.
- Animals have the vegetable kingdom for their nourishment, and within the animal kingdom again every animal is the prey and food of some other.
- Rodents are prey for avian, reptilian, and mammalian predators.
- Giant condors scavenged on the remains of prey killed by predators such as the American lion and sabre-toothed cats.
- She owned the wild animals, both prey and predators, and looked after them.
- I would also like to point out that foxes prey on rabbits and other small animals for food, which is a natural instinct, but humans are not natural predators to the fox.
- The calving lures many animals of prey, including lions and spotted hyena.
Synonyms
quarry, game, kill
1. 1.1 A person or thing easily injured or taken advantage of.
  受损害者，牺牲品
  he was easy prey for the two con men
  他总是轻易上那两个骗子的当。
  Example sentencesExamples
  Security-shy residents are allowing themselves to become easy prey for burglars.
  As more visitors come to centres like Newry, unfortunately so too do criminals on the lookout for easy prey.
  They usually fed along the alley ways, since they were highways for the city's riffraff and homeless - usually easy prey.
  The niggling doubts surrounding his decision made so long ago fashioned him as easy prey for Jennifer's plan.
  The carnival regularly attracts armies of purse snatchers and pickpockets who find easy prey among the revellers.
  In this hot, desert-like mountain landscape I too would be easy prey.
  There wasn't much Joe enjoyed more than baiting his brothers and Adam, with his more volatile temper, was easy prey.
  They deserve a lot of credit for the way they compete each week, knowing that most teams regard them as easy prey.
  In addition, people who were with drawing money from banks were easy prey for robbers.
  Call it greed, ignorance or gullibility, some people will always be the ‘marks’ - easy prey for the confidence tricksters.
  Should we fumble, should we fall in the middle of the road, we will become easy prey.
  Benson Osawe, academic affairs officer at the university's student union, said students were often seen as easy prey.
  That the enemy had not singled Winfred out to be easy prey was nothing short of pure fortune, especially with the battle still raging before his eyes.
  If we kept you on, the employee who had cost us so much, we would look like a laughing stock, and we'd also be easy prey for rival businesses.
  When I became disoriented I knew I was easy prey for her lioness ways.
  Decadent, corrupt nobles were always easy prey for barbarians and rebels.
  He had made himself easy prey, since he had kicked off his shoes.
  That makes them easy prey for insurance crooks who promise to recoup more than a policy is worth - for a fee - then disappear.
  A lot of youth are illiterate and unemployed and easy prey.
  The region's 70,000-strong student population is the largest in the country and criminals often see them as easy prey.
  Synonyms
  victim, target, dupe, fool, innocent, gull
2. 1.2archaic Plunder or (in biblical use) a prize.
  〈古〉掠夺品，（《圣经》用语）战利品

verbprāpreɪ

[no object]prey on/upon

1Hunt and kill for food.
捕食
small birds that prey on insect pests
捕食害虫的小鸟。
Example sentencesExamples
- Fire ants prey on karst invertebrates and the surface community food base upon which the karst species depend.
- Foxes as predators prey on lambs and chickens and kill native small marsupials and rodents.
- With plenty of smaller birds and rabbits to prey on, all around the island kestrels hover, buzzards glide and peregrine falcons swoop.
- Crows prey on young ducklings while foxes kill the breeding stock if or when the opportunity arises.
- As much as I am appalled at what cats do to defenceless animals, I could never be cruel to them, even when they invade my garden to prey on the birds that drop in for food and water.
- These hordes of hungry insects will prey on many destructive garden bugs.
- Those stages for the tree are then linked to the various pests that prey on apple trees and fruits.
- He gets about $240 a year but he insists it's not enough, especially when lions prey on his cattle.
- Several species of insects and mites prey on spider mites.
- The exotic spiders, which are at first of normal size, slowly start to grow bigger and burst out of their confines to prey on the township population.
- The worker ants prey on other insects and can chew holes in fabrics, plastics and rubber goods, including the insulation of telephone or electrical wires.
- Eastern Screech-Owls are known to prey on a variety of insects, small birds, and small mammals.
- Lacewings are beneficial insects which prey on bugs that damage food crops.
- Real vampire bats prey on cattle and horses, take tiny quantities of blood and are dangerous only insofar as they sometimes carry bovine tuberculosis and rabies.
- A beneficial insect is usually defined by the gardener as one that preys on insects that can damage plants of value to that very same gardener.
- Considered pests that prey on pets and livestock, the eagles have been hunted down by residents.
- A biologist at the University of Arizona, Rosen studies what insects and fish prey on bullfrog tadpoles.
- Garbage will attract gulls and mammals that prey upon nesting birds.
- In Espanola's Gardner Bay, a hungry ocean shark, come to prey on young sea lion pups, chased a group of snorkelers onto the rocks.
- In Scotland we have no indigenous crayfish but signal crayfish, which grow to over 20 cm, are omnivores and can prey on small fish and fish eggs.
Synonyms
hunt, catch, seize
1. 1.1 Take advantage of; exploit or injure.
  利用；剥削；伤害
  this is a mean type of theft by ruthless people preying on the elderly
  这是无情之徒利用老人弱势的一种卑鄙偷窃。
  Example sentencesExamples
  Ruthless thieves are preying on the elderly outside charity and discount shops in Swindon.
  A man who preyed on the elderly by burgling residential care homes in his own village faces a jail term.
  People who prey on elderly women ought to be locked up forever.
  There are few offenders more despicable than criminals who prey on the elderly and infirm.
  Three Cumbrian building societies have joined forces to combat cruel fraudsters who prey on the elderly and vulnerable.
  James Player believes the problem of conmen preying on the elderly and vulnerable could even be more serious than the figures reveal - because many who have been targeted are ashamed by having been conned so easily and do not come forward.
  Police have warned the public to be on their guard for two men posing as policemen who prey on elderly victims in their homes.
  These are artist's impressions of two men who preyed on elderly people living in Ludgershall.
  Cruel doorstep cheats who prey on elderly people claim the number one spot on a damning ‘top five’ list of the worst swindlers, conmen and thieves.
  Rogue traders who prey on York's elderly residents could face court as city councillors step up their campaign against doorstep crime.
  Her regular trip to the Post Office used to be a nightmare ordeal as she walked streets plagued by drug addicts and petty crooks, all prepared to prey on the elderly.
  An initiative to stop bogus callers preying on elderly victims has been launched in Basildon today.
  Two prolific burglars who preyed on elderly people by claiming to be looking for a lost kitten have been jailed.
  Gardaí believe he was one of the leaders of a group of Traveller families who prey on elderly people living alone in remote, rural parts of the west of Ireland.
  To take advantage of the hopeless is truly despicable, but to prey on the helpless, whether directly or indirectly, is criminal.
  Burglars have been preying on elderly residents by pretending to be from the water board to get into their homes.
  Cold-hearted door-to-door salesmen are preying on the elderly and conning them into buying over-priced funerals.
  The criminals who prey on the elderly are the lowest of the low - contemptible cowards whose targets are the frail and solitary.
  Cowboys and cold callers who prey on York and North Yorkshire's elderly and vulnerable could have the door shut in their face if a Parliamentary bill becomes law.
  A scheme to take on cowboy builders who prey on elderly people was launched by Sutton and Cheam MP Paul Burstow last week.
  Synonyms
  exploit, victimize, molest, pick on, intimidate, harass, hound, take advantage of
2. 1.2 Cause constant trouble and distress to.
  折磨；损害；使痛苦；使烦恼
  the problem had begun to prey on my mind
  这个问题已经开始让我心烦意乱。
  Example sentencesExamples
  You've been waiting in the wings since 2001, but you haven't yet cemented your spot - does that prey on your mind?
  As he grew up he refused to allow the horrific accident to prey on his mind and despite his disability he was able to do well at primary and elementary school.
  Shortly after Hamilton's discovery of the quaternions his personal life started to prey on his mind again.
  After the couple's return from the holiday isle, one thing continued to prey on their mind.
  Although he was delighted, finally, to learn who his natural mother was, it was not something that had constantly preyed on his mind.
  Since it had been mentioned to him on the dock, the thought that pirates had attacked her ship preyed constantly on his mind.
  In the past, the bigger the tournament, the more the magnitude of a victory seemed to prey on her mind.
  When I'm between jobs, the issue of money tends to prey on my mind.
  Synonyms
  oppress, weigh on, weigh heavily on, lie heavy on, burden, be a burden on, be a burden to, hang over, gnaw at

Phrases

fall prey to (also be or become prey to)

1Be hunted and killed by (an animal)
被…捕食
small rodents fell prey to domestic cats
小啮齿动物成为家猫的猎物。
Example sentencesExamples
- In Northeast China, a Siberian tiger was recently found killed after it fell prey to a trap originally set by the locals for boars.
- Many fall prey to poachers who kill them for meat and steal eggs from the corpses to sell as aphrodisiacs.
- Eggs and hatchlings are the most vulnerable, falling prey to insects, crustaceans, mollusks, small mammals, birds, other reptiles, and various fishes.
1. 1.1Be vulnerable to or overcome by.
  受…伤害；被…战胜
  he would often fall prey to melancholy
  他常常受到忧伤的折磨。
  the settlers become prey to nameless fears
  移民受到莫名恐惧的折磨。
  Example sentencesExamples
  I think that she fell prey to someone much more powerful and more cunning than she was and believed everything he said hook, line, and sinker, and she's a victim of crime, the way I see it.
  Whether or not he formed political opinions on his own, or simply fell prey to the rhetoric of more intelligent people, remains to be seen, although even his loving wife accused him of being extremely naive at times.
  I was at that time subject to normal adolescent laziness, though it was not until much later that I fell prey to the chronic indolence which has caused my lifetime's achievements to have been fairly unremarkable.
  Economic actors, sage and careful in other things, can in some circumstances fall prey to what Frank calls ‘luxury fever.’
  Marcus Davey, defending, said his client was honest about what happened, saying he simply fell prey to temptation.
  But Marcia fell prey to the cancer that would ultimately kill her.
  Though not an arborist, I knew that something had to be done to improve the health of our forest, and it had to be done quickly before the bulk of our trees fell prey to disease or drought.
  In the absence of civic or infrastructure development, people in Sittilingi, Tamil Nadu, fell prey to numerous preventable diseases.
  I just fell prey to a feeling of having lost something.
  Still others were too aged for the hard work of building huts, in addition to which they easily fell prey to the tropical fevers and other diseases spread by the mosquitoes and the brackish water that was the settlers' only supply.
  Synonyms
  succumb to, be overcome by, be overwhelmed by

Origin

Middle English (also denoting plunder taken in war): the noun from Old French preie, from Latin praeda ‘booty’, the verb from Old French preier, based on Latin praedari ‘seize as plunder’, from praeda.

单词	prey
释义	Definition of prey in English: prey noun preɪpreɪ mass noun 1An animal that is hunted and killed by another for food. 被捕食的动物；捕获物 the kestrel pounced on its prey Example sentencesExamples Insects feeding on the blood of higher animals locate their prey by following the high CO2 gradient produced by its breath. Vulnerability, habitat selection, or other variables may affect where predators kill prey. Many animals that are prey, such as rabbits and deer, have much less binocular vision. Pythons are constrictors, meaning they rely on strength, not venom, to kill their prey. Many snakes also use their bending skills to kill their prey by coiling tightly around them. The calving lures many animals of prey, including lions and spotted hyena. Think of a carnivore animal evolving powerful jaws to catch and kill its prey. Animals have the vegetable kingdom for their nourishment, and within the animal kingdom again every animal is the prey and food of some other. These birds, endemic in southern Africa, are obligate scavengers, which means they are unable to kill their own prey as eagles or hawks do. Giant condors scavenged on the remains of prey killed by predators such as the American lion and sabre-toothed cats. Venoms immobilise and kill their prey by blocking certain ‘targets’ within the body. Spotted hyenas kill their own prey more often than they scavenge. Rodents are prey for avian, reptilian, and mammalian predators. Perhaps this shows us another reason for fear of spiders - it is the only other creature that sets traps and toys with its prey before killing it. I would also like to point out that foxes prey on rabbits and other small animals for food, which is a natural instinct, but humans are not natural predators to the fox. The enzymes and toxins in scorpion venom are used by the arachnid to paralyse its prey and digest its food. Carnivora have long teeth and claws for holding and killing prey; vegetarian animals have short teeth and no claws. To assure the bugs have enough food if insect prey is scarce, place some apple slices in the nursery. She owned the wild animals, both prey and predators, and looked after them. Lions when deprived of their usual prey occasionally attack domestic animals and even human beings. Synonyms quarry, game, kill 1.1 A person who is easily deceived or harmed. he was easy prey for the two con men 他总是轻易上那两个骗子的当。 Example sentencesExamples A lot of youth are illiterate and unemployed and easy prey. That the enemy had not singled Winfred out to be easy prey was nothing short of pure fortune, especially with the battle still raging before his eyes. They usually fed along the alley ways, since they were highways for the city's riffraff and homeless - usually easy prey. Benson Osawe, academic affairs officer at the university's student union, said students were often seen as easy prey. Call it greed, ignorance or gullibility, some people will always be the ‘marks’ - easy prey for the confidence tricksters. Security-shy residents are allowing themselves to become easy prey for burglars. In this hot, desert-like mountain landscape I too would be easy prey. Decadent, corrupt nobles were always easy prey for barbarians and rebels. Should we fumble, should we fall in the middle of the road, we will become easy prey. They deserve a lot of credit for the way they compete each week, knowing that most teams regard them as easy prey. The carnival regularly attracts armies of purse snatchers and pickpockets who find easy prey among the revellers. As more visitors come to centres like Newry, unfortunately so too do criminals on the lookout for easy prey. In addition, people who were with drawing money from banks were easy prey for robbers. There wasn't much Joe enjoyed more than baiting his brothers and Adam, with his more volatile temper, was easy prey. The region's 70,000-strong student population is the largest in the country and criminals often see them as easy prey. He had made himself easy prey, since he had kicked off his shoes. If we kept you on, the employee who had cost us so much, we would look like a laughing stock, and we'd also be easy prey for rival businesses. When I became disoriented I knew I was easy prey for her lioness ways. The niggling doubts surrounding his decision made so long ago fashioned him as easy prey for Jennifer's plan. That makes them easy prey for insurance crooks who promise to recoup more than a policy is worth - for a fee - then disappear. Synonyms victim, target, dupe, fool, innocent, gull informal sucker, soft/easy touch, pushover, chump British informal muggins, charlie North American informal patsy, sap, schlemiel, pigeon, mark Australian/New Zealand informal dill British informal, dated juggins 2archaic Plunder or (in biblical use) a prize. 〈古〉掠夺品，（《圣经》用语）战利品 verb preɪpreɪ [no object]prey on/upon 1Hunt and kill for food. 捕食 small birds that prey on insect pests 捕食害虫的小鸟。 Example sentencesExamples Several species of insects and mites prey on spider mites. Garbage will attract gulls and mammals that prey upon nesting birds. Eastern Screech-Owls are known to prey on a variety of insects, small birds, and small mammals. A beneficial insect is usually defined by the gardener as one that preys on insects that can damage plants of value to that very same gardener. A biologist at the University of Arizona, Rosen studies what insects and fish prey on bullfrog tadpoles. Crows prey on young ducklings while foxes kill the breeding stock if or when the opportunity arises. As much as I am appalled at what cats do to defenceless animals, I could never be cruel to them, even when they invade my garden to prey on the birds that drop in for food and water. He gets about $240 a year but he insists it's not enough, especially when lions prey on his cattle. Fire ants prey on karst invertebrates and the surface community food base upon which the karst species depend. Considered pests that prey on pets and livestock, the eagles have been hunted down by residents. The worker ants prey on other insects and can chew holes in fabrics, plastics and rubber goods, including the insulation of telephone or electrical wires. In Scotland we have no indigenous crayfish but signal crayfish, which grow to over 20 cm, are omnivores and can prey on small fish and fish eggs. Those stages for the tree are then linked to the various pests that prey on apple trees and fruits. Lacewings are beneficial insects which prey on bugs that damage food crops. Real vampire bats prey on cattle and horses, take tiny quantities of blood and are dangerous only insofar as they sometimes carry bovine tuberculosis and rabies. Foxes as predators prey on lambs and chickens and kill native small marsupials and rodents. These hordes of hungry insects will prey on many destructive garden bugs. With plenty of smaller birds and rabbits to prey on, all around the island kestrels hover, buzzards glide and peregrine falcons swoop. In Espanola's Gardner Bay, a hungry ocean shark, come to prey on young sea lion pups, chased a group of snorkelers onto the rocks. The exotic spiders, which are at first of normal size, slowly start to grow bigger and burst out of their confines to prey on the township population. Synonyms hunt, catch, seize eat, devour, feed on, live on, live off 1.1 Take advantage of or harm. 利用；剥削；伤害 this is a mean type of theft by ruthless people preying on the elderly 这是无情之徒利用老人弱势的一种卑鄙偷窃。 Example sentencesExamples Cruel doorstep cheats who prey on elderly people claim the number one spot on a damning ‘top five’ list of the worst swindlers, conmen and thieves. James Player believes the problem of conmen preying on the elderly and vulnerable could even be more serious than the figures reveal - because many who have been targeted are ashamed by having been conned so easily and do not come forward. An initiative to stop bogus callers preying on elderly victims has been launched in Basildon today. A man who preyed on the elderly by burgling residential care homes in his own village faces a jail term. Cold-hearted door-to-door salesmen are preying on the elderly and conning them into buying over-priced funerals. Rogue traders who prey on York's elderly residents could face court as city councillors step up their campaign against doorstep crime. There are few offenders more despicable than criminals who prey on the elderly and infirm. To take advantage of the hopeless is truly despicable, but to prey on the helpless, whether directly or indirectly, is criminal. Her regular trip to the Post Office used to be a nightmare ordeal as she walked streets plagued by drug addicts and petty crooks, all prepared to prey on the elderly. Gardaí believe he was one of the leaders of a group of Traveller families who prey on elderly people living alone in remote, rural parts of the west of Ireland. People who prey on elderly women ought to be locked up forever. These are artist's impressions of two men who preyed on elderly people living in Ludgershall. Two prolific burglars who preyed on elderly people by claiming to be looking for a lost kitten have been jailed. The criminals who prey on the elderly are the lowest of the low - contemptible cowards whose targets are the frail and solitary. Police have warned the public to be on their guard for two men posing as policemen who prey on elderly victims in their homes. Cowboys and cold callers who prey on York and North Yorkshire's elderly and vulnerable could have the door shut in their face if a Parliamentary bill becomes law. Burglars have been preying on elderly residents by pretending to be from the water board to get into their homes. Three Cumbrian building societies have joined forces to combat cruel fraudsters who prey on the elderly and vulnerable. A scheme to take on cowboy builders who prey on elderly people was launched by Sutton and Cheam MP Paul Burstow last week. Ruthless thieves are preying on the elderly outside charity and discount shops in Swindon. Synonyms exploit, victimize, molest, pick on, intimidate, harass, hound, take advantage of trick, swindle, cheat, hoodwink, fleece attack, terrorize blackmail, bleed informal con 1.2 Cause constant distress to. 折磨；损害；使痛苦；使烦恼 the problem had begun to prey on my mind 这个问题已经开始让我心烦意乱。 Example sentencesExamples Shortly after Hamilton's discovery of the quaternions his personal life started to prey on his mind again. You've been waiting in the wings since 2001, but you haven't yet cemented your spot - does that prey on your mind? When I'm between jobs, the issue of money tends to prey on my mind. Since it had been mentioned to him on the dock, the thought that pirates had attacked her ship preyed constantly on his mind. In the past, the bigger the tournament, the more the magnitude of a victory seemed to prey on her mind. Although he was delighted, finally, to learn who his natural mother was, it was not something that had constantly preyed on his mind. After the couple's return from the holiday isle, one thing continued to prey on their mind. As he grew up he refused to allow the horrific accident to prey on his mind and despite his disability he was able to do well at primary and elementary school. Synonyms oppress, weigh on, weigh heavily on, lie heavy on, burden, be a burden on/to, hang over, gnaw at trouble, worry, beset, disturb, depress, distress, haunt, nag, torment, plague, obsess, take over, take control of Phrases fall prey to (also be or become prey to) 1Be hunted and killed by (an animal) 被…捕食 small rodents fell prey to domestic cats 小啮齿动物成为家猫的猎物。 Example sentencesExamples Eggs and hatchlings are the most vulnerable, falling prey to insects, crustaceans, mollusks, small mammals, birds, other reptiles, and various fishes. Many fall prey to poachers who kill them for meat and steal eggs from the corpses to sell as aphrodisiacs. In Northeast China, a Siberian tiger was recently found killed after it fell prey to a trap originally set by the locals for boars. 1.1Be vulnerable to or overcome by. 受…伤害；被…战胜 he would often fall prey to melancholy 他常常受到忧伤的折磨。 the settlers become prey to nameless fears 移民受到莫名恐惧的折磨。 Example sentencesExamples Though not an arborist, I knew that something had to be done to improve the health of our forest, and it had to be done quickly before the bulk of our trees fell prey to disease or drought. In the absence of civic or infrastructure development, people in Sittilingi, Tamil Nadu, fell prey to numerous preventable diseases. But Marcia fell prey to the cancer that would ultimately kill her. I just fell prey to a feeling of having lost something. Economic actors, sage and careful in other things, can in some circumstances fall prey to what Frank calls ‘luxury fever.’ Marcus Davey, defending, said his client was honest about what happened, saying he simply fell prey to temptation. Still others were too aged for the hard work of building huts, in addition to which they easily fell prey to the tropical fevers and other diseases spread by the mosquitoes and the brackish water that was the settlers' only supply. Whether or not he formed political opinions on his own, or simply fell prey to the rhetoric of more intelligent people, remains to be seen, although even his loving wife accused him of being extremely naive at times. I was at that time subject to normal adolescent laziness, though it was not until much later that I fell prey to the chronic indolence which has caused my lifetime's achievements to have been fairly unremarkable. I think that she fell prey to someone much more powerful and more cunning than she was and believed everything he said hook, line, and sinker, and she's a victim of crime, the way I see it. Synonyms succumb to, be overcome by, be overwhelmed by Derivatives preyer noun The great horned owl is the only reliable preyer upon skunks. Example sentencesExamples The man-dog is preyer; the rabbit is prey. Origin Middle English (also denoting plunder taken in war): the noun from Old French preie, from Latin praeda 'booty', the verb from Old French preier, based on Latin praedari 'seize as plunder', from praeda. prison from Old English: This comes via Old French from Latin prehendere ‘to seize’. Prehendere is a rich source of English words, being found, amongst many, in apprehend (late 16th century), comprehend (late 16th century); prehensile (late 18th century); and reprehensible (Late Middle English). A shortening of prehendere lies behind praedari ‘plunder’ and praeda ‘booty’, which lie behind depredation (Late Middle English); predatory [L16]; and prey (Middle English). Rhymes affray, agley, aka, allay, Angers, A-OK, appellation contrôlée, array, assay, astray, au fait, auto-da-fé, away, aweigh, aye, bay, belay, betray, bey, Bombay, Bordet, boulevardier, bouquet, brae, bray, café au lait, Carné, cassoulet, Cathay, chassé, chevet, chez, chiné, clay, convey, Cray, crème brûlée, crudités, cuvée, cy-pres, day, decay, deejay, dégagé, distinguée, downplay, dray, Dufay, Dushanbe, eh, embay, engagé, essay, everyday, faraway, fay, fey, flay, fray, Frey, fromage frais, gainsay, Gaye, Genet, giclee, gilet, glissé, gray, grey, halfway, hay, heigh, hey, hooray, Hubei, Hué, hurray, inveigh, jay, jeunesse dorée, José, Kay, Kaye, Klee, Kray, Lae, lay, lei, Littré, Lough Neagh, lwei, Mae, maguey, Malay, Mallarmé, Mandalay, Marseilles, may, midday, midway, mislay, misplay, Monterrey, Na-Dene, nay, né, née, neigh, Ney, noway, obey, O'Dea, okay, olé, outlay, outplay, outstay, outweigh, oyez, part-way, pay, Pei, per se, pince-nez, play, portray, pray, purvey, qua, Quai d'Orsay, Rae, rangé, ray, re, reflet, relevé, roman-à-clef, Santa Fé, say, sei, Shar Pei, shay, slay, sleigh, sley, spae, spay, Spey, splay, spray, stay, straightaway, straightway, strathspey, stray, Sui, survey, sway, Taipei, Tay, they, today, tokay, Torbay, Tournai, trait, tray, trey, two-way, ukiyo-e, underlay, way, waylay, Wei, weigh, wey, Whangarei, whey, yea noun.1 phr. Definition of prey in US English: prey nounprāpreɪ 1An animal that is hunted and killed by another for food. 被捕食的动物；捕获物 the kestrel is ready to pounce on unsuspecting prey 红隼准备扑向毫无戒备的猎物。 Example sentencesExamples Spotted hyenas kill their own prey more often than they scavenge. Perhaps this shows us another reason for fear of spiders - it is the only other creature that sets traps and toys with its prey before killing it. These birds, endemic in southern Africa, are obligate scavengers, which means they are unable to kill their own prey as eagles or hawks do. To assure the bugs have enough food if insect prey is scarce, place some apple slices in the nursery. Think of a carnivore animal evolving powerful jaws to catch and kill its prey. Insects feeding on the blood of higher animals locate their prey by following the high CO2 gradient produced by its breath. Many snakes also use their bending skills to kill their prey by coiling tightly around them. Carnivora have long teeth and claws for holding and killing prey; vegetarian animals have short teeth and no claws. Lions when deprived of their usual prey occasionally attack domestic animals and even human beings. Many animals that are prey, such as rabbits and deer, have much less binocular vision. The enzymes and toxins in scorpion venom are used by the arachnid to paralyse its prey and digest its food. Vulnerability, habitat selection, or other variables may affect where predators kill prey. Pythons are constrictors, meaning they rely on strength, not venom, to kill their prey. Venoms immobilise and kill their prey by blocking certain ‘targets’ within the body. Animals have the vegetable kingdom for their nourishment, and within the animal kingdom again every animal is the prey and food of some other. Rodents are prey for avian, reptilian, and mammalian predators. Giant condors scavenged on the remains of prey killed by predators such as the American lion and sabre-toothed cats. She owned the wild animals, both prey and predators, and looked after them. I would also like to point out that foxes prey on rabbits and other small animals for food, which is a natural instinct, but humans are not natural predators to the fox. The calving lures many animals of prey, including lions and spotted hyena. Synonyms quarry, game, kill 1.1 A person or thing easily injured or taken advantage of. 受损害者，牺牲品 he was easy prey for the two con men 他总是轻易上那两个骗子的当。 Example sentencesExamples Security-shy residents are allowing themselves to become easy prey for burglars. As more visitors come to centres like Newry, unfortunately so too do criminals on the lookout for easy prey. They usually fed along the alley ways, since they were highways for the city's riffraff and homeless - usually easy prey. The niggling doubts surrounding his decision made so long ago fashioned him as easy prey for Jennifer's plan. The carnival regularly attracts armies of purse snatchers and pickpockets who find easy prey among the revellers. In this hot, desert-like mountain landscape I too would be easy prey. There wasn't much Joe enjoyed more than baiting his brothers and Adam, with his more volatile temper, was easy prey. They deserve a lot of credit for the way they compete each week, knowing that most teams regard them as easy prey. In addition, people who were with drawing money from banks were easy prey for robbers. Call it greed, ignorance or gullibility, some people will always be the ‘marks’ - easy prey for the confidence tricksters. Should we fumble, should we fall in the middle of the road, we will become easy prey. Benson Osawe, academic affairs officer at the university's student union, said students were often seen as easy prey. That the enemy had not singled Winfred out to be easy prey was nothing short of pure fortune, especially with the battle still raging before his eyes. If we kept you on, the employee who had cost us so much, we would look like a laughing stock, and we'd also be easy prey for rival businesses. When I became disoriented I knew I was easy prey for her lioness ways. Decadent, corrupt nobles were always easy prey for barbarians and rebels. He had made himself easy prey, since he had kicked off his shoes. That makes them easy prey for insurance crooks who promise to recoup more than a policy is worth - for a fee - then disappear. A lot of youth are illiterate and unemployed and easy prey. The region's 70,000-strong student population is the largest in the country and criminals often see them as easy prey. Synonyms victim, target, dupe, fool, innocent, gull 1.2archaic Plunder or (in biblical use) a prize. 〈古〉掠夺品，（《圣经》用语）战利品 verbprāpreɪ [no object]prey on/upon 1Hunt and kill for food. 捕食 small birds that prey on insect pests 捕食害虫的小鸟。 Example sentencesExamples Fire ants prey on karst invertebrates and the surface community food base upon which the karst species depend. Foxes as predators prey on lambs and chickens and kill native small marsupials and rodents. With plenty of smaller birds and rabbits to prey on, all around the island kestrels hover, buzzards glide and peregrine falcons swoop. Crows prey on young ducklings while foxes kill the breeding stock if or when the opportunity arises. As much as I am appalled at what cats do to defenceless animals, I could never be cruel to them, even when they invade my garden to prey on the birds that drop in for food and water. These hordes of hungry insects will prey on many destructive garden bugs. Those stages for the tree are then linked to the various pests that prey on apple trees and fruits. He gets about $240 a year but he insists it's not enough, especially when lions prey on his cattle. Several species of insects and mites prey on spider mites. The exotic spiders, which are at first of normal size, slowly start to grow bigger and burst out of their confines to prey on the township population. The worker ants prey on other insects and can chew holes in fabrics, plastics and rubber goods, including the insulation of telephone or electrical wires. Eastern Screech-Owls are known to prey on a variety of insects, small birds, and small mammals. Lacewings are beneficial insects which prey on bugs that damage food crops. Real vampire bats prey on cattle and horses, take tiny quantities of blood and are dangerous only insofar as they sometimes carry bovine tuberculosis and rabies. A beneficial insect is usually defined by the gardener as one that preys on insects that can damage plants of value to that very same gardener. Considered pests that prey on pets and livestock, the eagles have been hunted down by residents. A biologist at the University of Arizona, Rosen studies what insects and fish prey on bullfrog tadpoles. Garbage will attract gulls and mammals that prey upon nesting birds. In Espanola's Gardner Bay, a hungry ocean shark, come to prey on young sea lion pups, chased a group of snorkelers onto the rocks. In Scotland we have no indigenous crayfish but signal crayfish, which grow to over 20 cm, are omnivores and can prey on small fish and fish eggs. Synonyms hunt, catch, seize 1.1 Take advantage of; exploit or injure. 利用；剥削；伤害 this is a mean type of theft by ruthless people preying on the elderly 这是无情之徒利用老人弱势的一种卑鄙偷窃。 Example sentencesExamples Ruthless thieves are preying on the elderly outside charity and discount shops in Swindon. A man who preyed on the elderly by burgling residential care homes in his own village faces a jail term. People who prey on elderly women ought to be locked up forever. There are few offenders more despicable than criminals who prey on the elderly and infirm. Three Cumbrian building societies have joined forces to combat cruel fraudsters who prey on the elderly and vulnerable. James Player believes the problem of conmen preying on the elderly and vulnerable could even be more serious than the figures reveal - because many who have been targeted are ashamed by having been conned so easily and do not come forward. Police have warned the public to be on their guard for two men posing as policemen who prey on elderly victims in their homes. These are artist's impressions of two men who preyed on elderly people living in Ludgershall. Cruel doorstep cheats who prey on elderly people claim the number one spot on a damning ‘top five’ list of the worst swindlers, conmen and thieves. Rogue traders who prey on York's elderly residents could face court as city councillors step up their campaign against doorstep crime. Her regular trip to the Post Office used to be a nightmare ordeal as she walked streets plagued by drug addicts and petty crooks, all prepared to prey on the elderly. An initiative to stop bogus callers preying on elderly victims has been launched in Basildon today. Two prolific burglars who preyed on elderly people by claiming to be looking for a lost kitten have been jailed. Gardaí believe he was one of the leaders of a group of Traveller families who prey on elderly people living alone in remote, rural parts of the west of Ireland. To take advantage of the hopeless is truly despicable, but to prey on the helpless, whether directly or indirectly, is criminal. Burglars have been preying on elderly residents by pretending to be from the water board to get into their homes. Cold-hearted door-to-door salesmen are preying on the elderly and conning them into buying over-priced funerals. The criminals who prey on the elderly are the lowest of the low - contemptible cowards whose targets are the frail and solitary. Cowboys and cold callers who prey on York and North Yorkshire's elderly and vulnerable could have the door shut in their face if a Parliamentary bill becomes law. A scheme to take on cowboy builders who prey on elderly people was launched by Sutton and Cheam MP Paul Burstow last week. Synonyms exploit, victimize, molest, pick on, intimidate, harass, hound, take advantage of 1.2 Cause constant trouble and distress to. 折磨；损害；使痛苦；使烦恼 the problem had begun to prey on my mind 这个问题已经开始让我心烦意乱。 Example sentencesExamples You've been waiting in the wings since 2001, but you haven't yet cemented your spot - does that prey on your mind? As he grew up he refused to allow the horrific accident to prey on his mind and despite his disability he was able to do well at primary and elementary school. Shortly after Hamilton's discovery of the quaternions his personal life started to prey on his mind again. After the couple's return from the holiday isle, one thing continued to prey on their mind. Although he was delighted, finally, to learn who his natural mother was, it was not something that had constantly preyed on his mind. Since it had been mentioned to him on the dock, the thought that pirates had attacked her ship preyed constantly on his mind. In the past, the bigger the tournament, the more the magnitude of a victory seemed to prey on her mind. When I'm between jobs, the issue of money tends to prey on my mind. Synonyms oppress, weigh on, weigh heavily on, lie heavy on, burden, be a burden on, be a burden to, hang over, gnaw at Phrases fall prey to (also be or become prey to) 1Be hunted and killed by (an animal) 被…捕食 small rodents fell prey to domestic cats 小啮齿动物成为家猫的猎物。 Example sentencesExamples In Northeast China, a Siberian tiger was recently found killed after it fell prey to a trap originally set by the locals for boars. Many fall prey to poachers who kill them for meat and steal eggs from the corpses to sell as aphrodisiacs. Eggs and hatchlings are the most vulnerable, falling prey to insects, crustaceans, mollusks, small mammals, birds, other reptiles, and various fishes. 1.1Be vulnerable to or overcome by. 受…伤害；被…战胜 he would often fall prey to melancholy 他常常受到忧伤的折磨。 the settlers become prey to nameless fears 移民受到莫名恐惧的折磨。 Example sentencesExamples I think that she fell prey to someone much more powerful and more cunning than she was and believed everything he said hook, line, and sinker, and she's a victim of crime, the way I see it. Whether or not he formed political opinions on his own, or simply fell prey to the rhetoric of more intelligent people, remains to be seen, although even his loving wife accused him of being extremely naive at times. I was at that time subject to normal adolescent laziness, though it was not until much later that I fell prey to the chronic indolence which has caused my lifetime's achievements to have been fairly unremarkable. Economic actors, sage and careful in other things, can in some circumstances fall prey to what Frank calls ‘luxury fever.’ Marcus Davey, defending, said his client was honest about what happened, saying he simply fell prey to temptation. But Marcia fell prey to the cancer that would ultimately kill her. Though not an arborist, I knew that something had to be done to improve the health of our forest, and it had to be done quickly before the bulk of our trees fell prey to disease or drought. In the absence of civic or infrastructure development, people in Sittilingi, Tamil Nadu, fell prey to numerous preventable diseases. I just fell prey to a feeling of having lost something. Still others were too aged for the hard work of building huts, in addition to which they easily fell prey to the tropical fevers and other diseases spread by the mosquitoes and the brackish water that was the settlers' only supply. Synonyms succumb to, be overcome by, be overwhelmed by Origin Middle English (also denoting plunder taken in war): the noun from Old French preie, from Latin praeda ‘booty’, the verb from Old French preier, based on Latin praedari ‘seize as plunder’, from praeda. noun.1 phr.
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