heckler

noun

heck·​ler ˈhe-k(ə-)lər 

plural hecklers

: one who heckles someone (such as a performer or speaker) usually by shouting criticisms or insults

Instead of ignoring the trash talking, [Joey] Votto decided to play with the hecklers. "I remember when you used to be good," one fan shouted out. "I remember when you used to be thin," Votto fired back.

—Jimmy Traina

As is usual with us, we can't remember any of the jokes well enough to tell them—only one reply made by a comedian, Professor Irwin Corey, to a heckler. "When your I.Q. reaches twenty-eight," Corey told the man, "sell!"

—The New Yorker

Synonyms of heckler

• harasser
• tease
• torturer
• mocker
• tormentor
• attacker

Examples of heckler in a Sentence

avoided the hecklers who hung out on the street corner making threatening remarks to passersby

Recent Examples on the Web

Coaches go to the podium and become the heckler in the bleachers, lobbing shots over foul shots. —Troy Renck, Denver Post, 19 Apr. 2026

Placard-waving hecklers who supported Barry Goldwater, the Republican nominee for president, tried to interrupt Lady Bird’s speeches at many of the stops. —Charlotte Observer, 16 Apr. 2026

Vance jousted with at least one heckler over the war in Gaza, and he was pressed by another person over the administration’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case files. —ABC News, 15 Apr. 2026

Duran also served a two-game suspension in August 2024 after yelling a homophobic slur at a heckler during a Red Sox-Astros game at Fenway Park. —Gabrielle Starr, Boston Herald, 15 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1824, in the meaning defined above