as in proponent
a person who stirs up public feelings especially of discontent
an instigator who always managed to be innocently standing by once the fighting began
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Recent Examples of instigator
Kelly, of all people, was the enthusiastic breeze who blew me over—a bellwether more than an instigator of my emotional state.
—
Noah Galuten, The Atlantic, 4 Jan. 2026
From the instigator to the crybaby, everyone gets to partake in the seasonal chaos.
—Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 25 Dec. 2025
Snowstorms are the most frequent instigators of massive flight delays and cancellations at the area's big airports.
—Doyle Rice, USA Today, 10 Dec. 2025
Ruff thought the hit was high and also thought McCabe got his gloves off before Tuch, so the instigator was a confusing one.
—Matthew Fairburn, New York Times, 26 Oct. 2025
The Speaker instead condemned political violence in all its forms, while accusing the left of being the instigator of most political violence in the country.
—Mike Lillis, The Hill, 21 Oct. 2025
The instigator of Game 1’s most talked about play when Brewers center fielder Sal Frelick brought his fly ball back into play, Muncy cleared both the center field fence and Frelick’s glove for a solo home run in the sixth inning.
—Bill Plunkett, Oc Register, 16 Oct. 2025
The team found that artificial sweetener Stevia, as well as compounds released by our own gut cells, were the main instigators in activating these gut phages.
—New Atlas, 16 Oct. 2025
But while Josh may be the instigator, none of this would be remotely possible without George.
—Ben Church, CNN Money, 3 Oct. 2025
Noah Galuten, The Atlantic, 4 Jan. 2026
From the instigator to the crybaby, everyone gets to partake in the seasonal chaos.
—Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 25 Dec. 2025
Snowstorms are the most frequent instigators of massive flight delays and cancellations at the area's big airports.
—Doyle Rice, USA Today, 10 Dec. 2025
Ruff thought the hit was high and also thought McCabe got his gloves off before Tuch, so the instigator was a confusing one.
—Matthew Fairburn, New York Times, 26 Oct. 2025
The Speaker instead condemned political violence in all its forms, while accusing the left of being the instigator of most political violence in the country.
—Mike Lillis, The Hill, 21 Oct. 2025
The instigator of Game 1’s most talked about play when Brewers center fielder Sal Frelick brought his fly ball back into play, Muncy cleared both the center field fence and Frelick’s glove for a solo home run in the sixth inning.
—Bill Plunkett, Oc Register, 16 Oct. 2025
The team found that artificial sweetener Stevia, as well as compounds released by our own gut cells, were the main instigators in activating these gut phages.
—New Atlas, 16 Oct. 2025
But while Josh may be the instigator, none of this would be remotely possible without George.
—Ben Church, CNN Money, 3 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for instigator
Noun
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But proponents of the industry claim that the environmental costs still net out as a plus since the space data centers take processing off the fossil-fuel-burning grid.—
Jeffrey Kluger,
Time,
7 Jan. 2026
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One of the biggest proponents of the capri resurgence, the supermodel has been making a stylish case for cropped pants since last summer—and her latest iteration takes the divisive Noughties silhouette into Italian girl style territory.—
Lara Walsh,
InStyle,
7 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Looking ahead into her second year without Tyler, Persun is hoping to further build out her network of followers, friends and supporters.—
Zoey Lyttle,
PEOPLE,
14 Jan. 2026
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Trump promised transparency with regards to the Epstein investigation, but has alienated even loyal supporters with his actions on the matter.—
Brian Niemietz,
Mercury News,
14 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Finally, turn your buyers into promoters.—
Ben Kruger,
Rolling Stone,
15 Jan. 2026
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Dead drummer Mickey Hart said at one point legendary concert promoter Bill Graham vented to him about the lack of catchy songs.—
Adam Levine,
CNN Money,
11 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Last December, armed rebels previously aligned with terror groups finally ousted Assad from power after a 14 year civil war.—
Lucia I Suarez Sang,
CBS News,
11 Jan. 2026
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There was a buffer zone where French soldiers were and then the north was held by rebel groups.—
Jay Harris,
New York Times,
9 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The Dearborn Heights Police Department did not immediately respond to PEOPLE'S request for comment but Guzowski said an advocate has been assigned to the family.—
Paloma Chavez,
PEOPLE,
10 Jan. 2026
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Community leaders demand arrest of ICE agent Local leaders and advocates in Minnesota called for the ICE agent who fatally shot Renee Nicole Good to be publicly identified, fired and criminally prosecuted at a news conference on Thursday.—
Thao Nguyen,
USA Today,
9 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Load the down coat into a front-load washer or a high-efficiency top-load washer without a center agitator for gentle agitation.—
Mary Marlowe Leverette,
The Spruce,
14 Jan. 2026
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Federal agents fired tear gas and rubber bullets after agitators hurled fireworks at them outside a federal building in Minneapolis on Monday amid continued resistance to immigration enforcement in the Twin Cities.—
Michael Dorgan,
FOXNews.com,
13 Jan. 2026
Noun
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France, in cooperation with the European Space Agency, is testing the V-MaX vehicle, a hypersonic demonstrator that completed its first successful flight in 2024.—
Kaif Shaikh,
Interesting Engineering,
7 Nov. 2025
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To voice his frustrations, Mills, 37, of Chicago, has become a weekly demonstrator at the Broadview ICE facility.—
Nicquel Terry Ellis,
CNN Money,
2 Nov. 2025
Noun
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At worst, the government has invited in a provocateur who will continue to spread poison and incite violence.—
Helen Lewis,
The Atlantic,
30 Dec. 2025
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This same climate, however, allowed for vicious attacks on a provocateur from their side who had just been killed in cold blood.—
Miles Klee,
Rolling Stone,
21 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Instigator.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/instigator. Accessed 18 Jan. 2026.
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