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stool pigeon

noun

Definition of stool pigeon

  1. 1 :  a person acting as a decoy or informer; especially :  a spy sent into a group to report (as to the police) on its activities

  2. 2 :  a pigeon used as a decoy to draw others within a net

See stool pigeon defined for English-language learners

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Examples of stool pigeon in a Sentence

  1. the FBI finally got a break when one of the mob boss's top henchmen turned stool pigeon

Origin and Etymology of stool pigeon

probably from the early practice of fastening the decoy bird to a stool

stool pigeon Synonyms

Synonyms
betrayer, canary [slang], deep throat, fink, informant, nark [British], rat, rat fink, snitch, snitcher, squealer, stoolie, informer, talebearer, tattler, tattletale, telltale, whistle-blower
Related Words
collaborator; blabber, blabbermouth, gossip, gossiper, leaker; snoop, snooper, spy; notifier

STOOL PIGEON Defined for English Language Learners

stool pigeon

noun

Definition of stool pigeon for English Language Learners

  • : a criminal who gives the police information about other criminals

Learn More about stool pigeon

  1. See words that rhyme with stool pigeon Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for stool pigeon

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stool pigeon

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Examples: stool pigeon in a Sentence