stalker

noun

stalk·​er ˈstȯ-kər 

plural stalkers

1

: a person who stalks : a person who pursues someone obsessively and aggressively to the point of harassment

celebrity stalkers

In 1990, California was the first state to pass a stalking law that made it a crime to follow, threaten, or harass someone—especially if the stalker threatened violence.

—George

Eighty-seven percent of stalkers are men. Women tend to be victimized by lone male stalkers whom they know, while men are more likely to be stalked by strangers, and half of male victims' stalkers had an accomplice.

—Matthew Klein

2

: a person or animal that pursues quarry or prey stealthily

a deer stalker

Though I catch my share of trout, I do it by being a good stalker and knowing where the fish lie …

—Bill Barich

Polar bears are superb stalkers, and have a way of suddenly appearing heart-stoppingly close.

—John P. Wiley, Jr.

Examples of stalker in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In this sequence, human Lestat is a popular stage actor in Paris, and Magnus is a Perfect Blue-style greasy-haired stalker at the stage door. —Rebecca Alter, Vulture, 22 June 2026

Happily, Bonnie, for her part, doesn’t fall prey to an e-stalker, though she is subjected to some sneering group-chat abuse, which teaches her an important lesson about bullying, peer pressure, and the instability of online-only friendships. —Justin Chang, New Yorker, 19 June 2026

In the weeks leading up to the murder, Daniel Krug took elaborate steps to create the illusion of a stalker, prosecutors said. —Faith Karimi, CNN Money, 18 June 2026

Going from Ilya Rozanov to a narcissistic stalker, Storrie is showing off his range on the Paramount+ show. —Rachel Labonte, Entertainment Weekly, 11 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for stalker

• blocker
• chalker
• cocker
• docker
• hawker
• hocker
• knocker
• locker
• mocker
• ocher
• rocker
• shocker