whistleblower

noun

whis·​tle·​blow·​er ˈ(h)wi-səl-ˌblō-ər 

variants or whistle-blower

plural whistleblowers or whistle-blowers

: one who reveals something covert or who informs against another

especially : an employee who brings wrongdoing by an employer or by other employees to the attention of a government or law enforcement agency

Note: A whistleblower is commonly protected legally from retaliation.

I think whistleblowers play a hugely important role in countering the worst corporate and government excesses.

—Damon Poeter

… pledges to protect whistle-blowers who fear reprisals for their efforts.

—Wall Street Journal

Congress also added significant new protection for whistleblowers. The 1986 act provides remedies including reinstatement, back-pay with interest, and, as appropriate, punitive damages for whistleblowers who are discharged, demoted, or discriminated against due to involvement with a False Claims disclosure.

—Bradford A. Penney

whistleblowing

ˈ(h)wi-səl-ˌblō-iŋ 

adjective

or whistle-blowing

a whistleblowing report

Many states have already enacted laws that protect whistle-blowing employees from retaliation.

—Greg Critser

whistleblowing noun

or whistle-blowing

… a National Security Agency agent who got in trouble for whistle-blowing.

—Renée Camus

Synonyms

• betrayer
• canary [slang]
• deep throat
• fink
• informant
• informer
• nark [British]
• rat
• rat fink
• snitch
• snitcher
• squealer
• stool pigeon
• stoolie
• talebearer
• tattler
• tattletale
• telltale

Examples of whistleblower in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The Office of Special Counsel (OSC) is forcefully instructing federal agencies and employees that NDAs do not supersede whistleblower rights. —Joe Davidson, Washington Post, 12 Apr. 2024

It’s supposed to be used to spy on foreigners—NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden made sure the world knew about that use case—but White House privacy advisers made clear at the time that Americans’ communications are also often scooped up. —David Meyer, Fortune, 11 Apr. 2024

The New York Times was first to report the whistleblower complaint. —Gregory Wallace, CNN, 10 Apr. 2024

There are new warnings about Boeing 787 jets A new Boeing whistleblower has come forward alleging production quality issues with the 787, the planemaker’s popular carbon fiber widebody jet. —USA TODAY, 10 Apr. 2024

Mark Zaid, a whistleblower attorney with a security clearance who represents many of the victims, said there's little doubt in his mind that Russia is involved and that the latest reporting should move the needle. —Anne Flaherty, ABC News, 1 Apr. 2024

Investigating Whistleblower’s Termination The Attorney General’s request to examine also asks for documents related to the termination of whistleblower Joshua Dean. —Marisa Garcia, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024

John was in the midst of a deposition in his whistleblower retaliation case, which finally was nearing the end. —Lucas Ropek / Gizmodo, Quartz, 13 Mar. 2024

Beutner said there is concern that whistleblowers could become targets for retaliation. —Howard Blume, Los Angeles Times, 1 Apr. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1906, in the meaning defined above

Legal Definition

whistleblower

noun

whis·​tle·​blow·​er

ˈhwi-səl-ˌblō-ər

: an employee who brings wrongdoing by an employer or other employees to the attention of a government or law enforcement agency and who is commonly vested by statute with rights and remedies for retaliation compare qui tam action

whistleblowing

-iŋ

noun