agent provocateur

noun

Definition of agent provocateurnext
as in agitator

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of agent provocateur The Italian Marco Materazzi was an agent provocateur, tossing out words about Zidane’s family like a grenade set to spew forth a red mist. — Amy Lawrence, New York Times, 31 May 2026 And for good reason; Villanueva spent his four years in office more as an agent provocateur than a public safety official. — The Editorial Board, Daily News, 13 May 2026 Members of the crowd accused Epps of being an agent provocateur, which later helped spur the conspiracy theories about him. — Justin Jouvenal, Washington Post, 9 Jan. 2024 Anyone who maligns the sultan is immediately thought to be an agent provocateur working for the sultan, and probably is. — Judith Shulevitz, The Atlantic, 30 Sep. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for agent provocateur
  1. troublemaker
  2. insurrectionist
  3. subversive
  4. agitator
  5. provocateur
  6. exciter
  7. instigator
  8. rabble-rouser
Noun
  • That leaves it in a diagnostic gray zone, not quite a harmless freeloader and not always a troublemaker either.
    — Hanna Wickes, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 19 Oct. 2026
  • Netanyahu in the past has attributed the violence to a small number of troublemakers.
    — Reuters, NBC news, 18 Oct. 2026
Definition of troublemaker
Noun
  • Thomas Hobbes took a very dim view of rebels and insurrectionists.
    — Austin Sarat, Fortune, 24 May 2026
  • The recipients will almost surely be insurrectionists and other allies.
    — Jonathan Chait, The Atlantic, 19 May 2026
Definition of insurrectionist
Noun
  • Home of the subversive and the sublime, the maverick and the madman, the inspired and the inspiring, the sage and the clown, and, most important, the brave.
    — Tom Selleck, USA Today, 11 Sep. 2026
  • Kristen Stewart loves to be a little subversive with her fashion choices.
    — Juliana Ukiomogbe, InStyle, 23 June 2026
Definition of subversive
Noun
  • Scores of pages of planning documents and social media posts analyzed by Fox News Digital reveal that agitators have laid the groundwork for a coordinated campaign with money, logistics and a communications infrastructure behind their efforts.
    — Asra Q. Nomani, FOXNews.com, 23 Oct. 2026
  • An agitator jumped onto the hood of an ICE vehicle and the officer driving applied the brakes.
    — Darrell Smith, Sacbee.com, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of agitator
Noun
  • Unsurprisingly given Greaves’ role as a provocateur, Dead Deities is a political project as much as an artistic one.
    — Sadie Sartini Garner, Pitchfork, 30 Oct. 2026
  • Mitchell went even further, one-upping the right-wing provocateur.
    — Doug Bock Clark, ProPublica, 28 Oct. 2026
Definition of provocateur
Noun
  • Up to 42 speakers include exciters in the concept-y seats, with Dolby Atmos capabilities and another seven projectors intended to create a fully immersive environment.
    — Michael Teo Van Runkle, ArsTechnica, 13 Aug. 2025
Definition of exciter
Noun
  • While a number of staff helped with the new center, former Superintendent Theresa Hill, now in that role at Homewood-Flossmoor Community School District 233, was the instigator.
    — Janice Neumann, Chicago Tribune, 29 Oct. 2026
  • Colorado then played almost 17 minutes with 10 forwards when Fedor Svechkov drew a two-minute instigator penalty, five minutes for fighting and 10 more for misconduct.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of instigator
Noun
  • Democratic politicians, bureaucrats and labor leaders, once rabble-rousers like Bass who nowadays seem to exist mostly to keep their sinecure, have labored mightily to convince unbelieving voters that Bass deserves another shot.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 14 Oct. 2026
  • The new faces are top-six forward Valeri Nichushkin and fourth-line rabble-rouser Ryan Lomberg.
    — Aaron Portzline, New York Times, 6 July 2026
Definition of rabble-rouser

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agent provocateur
agents
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Cite this Entry

“Agent provocateur.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/agent%20provocateur. Accessed 8 Nov. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on agent provocateur

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about agent provocateur

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