Translation guide
A person who works secretly for a government or organization to gather information or carry out covert operations.
He is a secret agent.
A person employed by a government agency to secretly collect information or conduct operations.
The most common and direct translation. Used for both professional and amateur contexts. Can be used for any nationality.
He was arrested as a spy.
I like spy movies.
A formal term for an intelligence agent. Often used in official or military contexts.
Literally 'secret intelligence agent'. Emphasizes the covert nature. Rarely used in everyday speech.
A person who works undercover, often in law enforcement or private investigation, pretending to be someone else to gather information.
A glamorous or heroic secret agent as depicted in movies, novels, or games, like James Bond.
スパイ is the general term for spy, used in everyday conversation and media. 諜報員 is more formal and often used in official or military contexts. For undercover police, use 潜入捜査官.
Arrested on suspicion of being a spy.
He was a military intelligence agent.
The literal translation 秘密の代理人 (himitsu no dairinin) is not used for spies. It would mean a secret representative or proxy, not a secret agent.
The secret agent transmitted the coded message.
She was recruited as a secret agent during the war.
He is a government intelligence agent.
A secret agent infiltrated enemy territory.
The undercover agent busted the illegal deal.
エージェント007が任務を遂行する。
Agent 007 carries out the mission.