Sound-alike words
Pray vs. Prey
Pray is a verb meaning to say a prayer, or loosely to hope very strongly for something. Prey is an animal hunted for food, and as a verb it means to hunt or take advantage of others. Owls hunt prey at night.
| Word | Part of speech | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| pray | verb | to say a prayer, or in everyday speech, to hope very strongly that something happens |
| prey | noun | an animal that another animal hunts and eats |
| verb | to hunt other animals for food, or to take unfair advantage of people, usually with on |
Pray
verb: to say a prayer, or in everyday speech, to hope very strongly that something happens
- We're praying the rain holds off until after the picnic.
- Sam prayed his old car would make it up the last hill.
Prey
noun: an animal that another animal hunts and eats
- Hawks circle high above the field, looking for prey.
- Mice are common prey for foxes and owls.
verb: to hunt other animals for food, or to take unfair advantage of people, usually with on
- Spiders prey on flies and other small insects.
- Scammers often prey on people who live alone.
How to remember the difference
Prey has an E, like eat: predators eat their prey. Pray has an A, like ask: when you pray, you ask for something.
Good to know
To fall prey to something means to become its victim, as in falling prey to a scam. In old-fashioned speech, pray can also mean please, as in pray tell.
Spot the mistake
Lions spend hours stalking their
prayprey in the tall grass.Correct: Lions spend hours stalking their prey in the tall grass.
Many older adults fall
prayprey to phone scams.Correct: Many older adults fall prey to phone scams.
Check yourself
Pick the word that fits each sentence.
1. The cat crouched low, watching its in the grass.
Answer: prey. This is the animal being hunted, so the noun prey fits.
2. We the snow stops before our flight takes off.
Answer: pray. Here the word means to hope strongly, so it is the verb pray.