Other forms: wiretapping, wiretaps, wiretapped
A wiretap is a secret device that listens in on telephone calls. A quiet connection somewhere along the line.
The word is chiefly American, and British English usually says a phone tap or an intercept. It carries a whole legal apparatus with it, since wiretaps generally require a warrant and evidence gathered without one may be thrown out. As a verb, to wiretap a line is to install one. The plain verb tap does the same job in Britain, which is why a tapped phone means exactly this.
a back-formation from wiretapper; or else wire + tap
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA
Practised in Crime & Law, A Man Called Ove, Spying & Secrecy
First appears in chapter 37 of A Man Called Ove.
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