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Proxies and Proxy Servers
Proxy comes from a contracted form of the Middle English word procuracie (meaning “procuration”). A proxy may refer to a person who is authorized to act for another or it may designate the function or authority of serving in another’s stead. In the latter sense, it generally is preceded by the word by (“vote by proxy”).
Proxy has recently taken on meanings in computing, where it is found in such phrases as proxy server, a computer system that facilitates the exchange of data between users on a network.
Synonyms
Examples of proxy in a Sentence
Alicia Wallace, CNN, 27 June 2024
Meanwhile, the prospect of regional war with Iranian proxies in Lebanon and beyond looms larger.
—Miriam Berger, Washington Post, 24 June 2024
In the Middle East, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly scorned Washington’s requests for restraint in his assault on the Palestinian militant group Hamas after its terror attack on his country last year, while Iran’s proxies are brazenly attacking U.S. targets.
—Keren Yarhi-Milo, Foreign Affairs, 18 June 2024
Unlike the male villager who hangs himself towards the movie’s halfway point, therefore condemning his spirit to eternal damnation in the pits of hell, the child-killer had a chance to atone for her sins before she was publicly executed for them — a suicide by proxy.
—David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 18 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for proxy 
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'proxy.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near proxy
Cite this Entry
“Proxy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/proxy. Accessed 4 Jul. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
proxy
nounLegal Definition
proxy
nounMiddle English procucie, contraction of procuracie, from Anglo-French, from Medieval Latin procuratia, alteration of Latin procuratio appointment of another as one's agent
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