conspiracy theorist
noun
plural conspiracy theorists
: a person who proposes or believes in a conspiracy theory
Distrust of the numbers is why one group of dissenters—government conspiracy theorists—grow during pandemics.—
Hank Campbell
Hank Campbell
Examples of conspiracy theorist in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Online conspiracy theorists soon jumped into the fray.
—Donie O'Sullivan, CNN, 20 Nov. 2023
The full images have never been publicly released, even as conspiracy theorists seized on the shooting with claims that the murders had been faked, turning Newtown into a grim landmark in America’s break with reality.
—Isaac Stanley-Becker, Washington Post, 16 Nov. 2023
Against the backdrop of the Israel-Hamas war, the Oct. 14 crash, which led to a murder charge against the driver, was taken up by conspiracy theorists, right-wing extremists and others on social media, whose rampant speculation was quickly shot down by police.
—Karen Garcia, Los Angeles Times, 27 Oct. 2023
Joe Raedle/Getty Images Georgia prosecutors on Tuesday requested that Infowars host and major conspiracy theorist Alex Jones and RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel testify in an upcoming trial for two of Donald Trump’s ex-lawyers.
—Ella Sherman, The New Republic, 11 Oct. 2023
Peters is a far-right conspiracy theorist who has regularly demonized Jews and LGBTQ people but is perhaps best known for his extreme anti-vax positions and spreading other falsehoods about Covid-19.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 28 Sep. 2023
Gubernatorial candidate Tudor Dixon aired conspiracy theorists on her conservative talk show.
—Monica Potts, ABC News, 6 Nov. 2023
The conspiracy has taken hold among right-wing audiences in the United States on social media, with psychologist turned right-wing conspiracy theorist Jordan Peterson boosting it in a tweet late last year that has been viewed almost 8 million times.
—WIRED, 2 Oct. 2023
Ray Epps, an Arizona man that conspiracy theorists falsely claim led an FBI plot to orchestrate the January 6 insurrection, filed a defamation lawsuit against Fox News in July.
—Oliver Darcy, CNN, 12 Sep. 2023
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Donie O'Sullivan, CNN, 20 Nov. 2023
The full images have never been publicly released, even as conspiracy theorists seized on the shooting with claims that the murders had been faked, turning Newtown into a grim landmark in America’s break with reality.
—Isaac Stanley-Becker, Washington Post, 16 Nov. 2023
Against the backdrop of the Israel-Hamas war, the Oct. 14 crash, which led to a murder charge against the driver, was taken up by conspiracy theorists, right-wing extremists and others on social media, whose rampant speculation was quickly shot down by police.
—Karen Garcia, Los Angeles Times, 27 Oct. 2023
Joe Raedle/Getty Images Georgia prosecutors on Tuesday requested that Infowars host and major conspiracy theorist Alex Jones and RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel testify in an upcoming trial for two of Donald Trump’s ex-lawyers.
—Ella Sherman, The New Republic, 11 Oct. 2023
Peters is a far-right conspiracy theorist who has regularly demonized Jews and LGBTQ people but is perhaps best known for his extreme anti-vax positions and spreading other falsehoods about Covid-19.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 28 Sep. 2023
Gubernatorial candidate Tudor Dixon aired conspiracy theorists on her conservative talk show.
—Monica Potts, ABC News, 6 Nov. 2023
The conspiracy has taken hold among right-wing audiences in the United States on social media, with psychologist turned right-wing conspiracy theorist Jordan Peterson boosting it in a tweet late last year that has been viewed almost 8 million times.
—WIRED, 2 Oct. 2023
Ray Epps, an Arizona man that conspiracy theorists falsely claim led an FBI plot to orchestrate the January 6 insurrection, filed a defamation lawsuit against Fox News in July.
—Oliver Darcy, CNN, 12 Sep. 2023
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'conspiracy theorist.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1961, in the meaning defined above
Time Traveler
The first known use of conspiracy theorist was
in 1961
Dictionary Entries Near conspiracy theorist
Cite this Entry
“Conspiracy theorist.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/conspiracy%20theorist. Accessed 10 Dec. 2023.
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