ティンカー、テイラー、ソルジャー、スパイ
隠語

ル・カレは「スマイリー三部作」において様々な諜報の隠語を駆使した。ル・カレが編み出したものの中でも「ハニートラップ」は特によく知られ、『ティンカー、テイラー、ソルジャー、スパイ』で用いられてから一般的に広まった。「もぐら」が二重スパイの意味で使われたのは印刷物では本作品が初めてだと言われている。
Babysitter - 訳語は「護衛」。
'George, why should I bring  if I am just going to meet Peter and a poor Pole?'
Burn - 訳語は「燃やす」（旧訳）、「炙（あぶ）る」（新訳）。脅迫を意味する。
In Spain a year later, acting on a tip-off supplied by Bill Haydon, Tarr blackmailed – or , as the scalphunters would say – a Polish diplomat who had lost his heart to a dancer.
Circus - 訳語は「サーカス」。MI6を指す。本部がロンドンのケンブリッジ・サーカスにあるという設定からそう呼ばれる。
In the war, having a certain mathematical facility, he had also haunted the fringes of the secret world; and once, as he never tired of telling, worked with John Landsbury on a  coding operation of transient delicacy.
Coat-trailing - 囮等を使って他国の工作員を転向させること。
'No overt connection with the local residency, no involvement in bread-and-butter operations, no , no talent-spotting, a good solid cover job. Still there for all I know.'
The Competition - 訳語は「ライバル機関」。MI5のこと。
‘Then go to ,’ he called. ‘Go to the security people. They’re the experts, they’ll do you a job.’
Graded Persil - 訳語は「漂白済み」。徹底調査の結果、情報上の重要性なしと格付けされること。「Persil」は合成洗剤のブランド名。
The six-monthly top-ups produced nothing at all, and after three years he was .
Honey-trap - 訳語は「色仕掛け（ハニー・トラップ）」。女性スパイが性的関係を利用して行う色仕掛け。主に脅迫を目的とする。
'You see, long ago when I was a little boy I made a mistake and walked into a .'
'He made an ass of himself with a Polish girl,' said Guillam. 'He sensed her generosity too.'
'I knew Irina was no  but how could I expect Mr Guillam to believe me? No way.'
Housekeepers - 訳語は「運営課」（旧訳）、「運営部」（新訳）。
‘Get it from . Get it from Control.’
Joe - 英米情報部が使う現地エージェントを指す。
'We buy Polyakov, okay? Polyakov’s a Moscow hood but he’s our . But he’s got to pretend to his own people that he’s spying on us.'
Juju man - 諜報機関における作戦担当官を指す。
'In your day the Circus ran itself by regions. Africa, satellites, Russia, China, South-East Asia, you name it; each region was commanded by its own .'
Lamplighters - 訳語は「点灯屋（ランプライター）」。監視や盗聴、輸送、隠れがの手配などを行う支援部隊。
The  were Toby Esterhase’s pack, based not in Brixton but in Acton. Their job was to provide the support services for mainline operations: watching, listening, transport and safe houses.
Mole - 訳語は「もぐら」。信頼を得た立場から機密情報を長期にわたって盗み出す二重スパイ。
Ivlov’s task was to service a . A  is a deep penetration agent so called because he burrows deep into the fabric of Western imperialism, in this case an Englishman.
Mothers - 訳語は「マザー」。サーカスの上級職員に仕える秘書やタイピスト。
Beyond his door lay the low-ceilinged anteroom where Control’s grey-haired ladies, the , softly typed and answered telephones.
Moscow Centre - 訳語は「モスクワ・センター」。KGBの本部。
On the fourth evening he drove her into the hills overlooking North Shore and Irina told Tarr that she had fallen in love with him and that she was employed by , she and her husband both, and that she knew Tarr was in the trade, too; she could tell by his alertness and the way he listened with his eyes.
Pavement artists - 尾行監視員を意味する。
'They tell me even his  ride around in Cadillacs. Steal the scalphunters’ bread out of their mouths too, if they get the chance, right, Mr Guillam?'
Scalphunters - 訳語は「首斬人（スカルプハンター）」（旧訳）、「首狩り人（スカルプハンター）」（新訳）。殺人や誘拐など危険な任務にあたる部隊。
The ’ official name was Travel. They had been formed by Control on Bill Haydon’s suggestion in the pioneer days of the Cold War, when murder and kidnapping and crash blackmail were common currency, and their first commandant was Haydon’s nominee.