stool pigeon
noun
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
: a pigeon used as a decoy to draw others within a net
Examples of stool pigeon in a Sentence
the FBI finally got a break when one of the mob boss's top henchmen turned stool pigeon
Recent Examples on the Web
Russo turned stool pigeon within a month of his November 2017 arrest for selling a kilo of cocaine to an undercover agent.
—
John Annese, New York Daily News, 26 Feb. 2025
They are barred from using certain language during debates including git, guttersnipe, swine and stool pigeon.
—Max Colchester, WSJ, 3 Jan. 2019
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John Annese, New York Daily News, 26 Feb. 2025
They are barred from using certain language during debates including git, guttersnipe, swine and stool pigeon.
—Max Colchester, WSJ, 3 Jan. 2019
Cite this Entry
“Stool pigeon.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stool%20pigeon. Accessed 10 Jul. 2025.
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