Synonyms of operatives

operatives

noun

plural of operative

1

as in spies

a person who tries secretly to obtain information for one country in the territory of another usually unfriendly country

CIA operatives take terrible risks to find out the secrets of foreign countries

Synonyms & Similar Words

• spies
• agents
• assets
• informers
• moles
• emissaries
• spooks
• undercover agents
• undercovers
• secret agents
• couriers
• infiltrators
• intelligencers
• sleepers
• counterspies
• double agents
• stool pigeons
• spymasters
• superspies

2

as in detectives

a person not on the police force who investigates criminal or illicit activity or searches for missing persons

set in the 1930s, the novel is about a washed-out operative working for a third-rate detective agency

Synonyms & Similar Words

• detectives
• investigators
• sleuths
• private detectives
• dicks
• gumshoes
• private investigators
• private eyes
• sleuthhounds
• shadows
• trackers
• sherlocks
• tracers
• hawkshaws
• shamuses
• plainclothesmen
• feds
• narcs
• tails
• G-men
• Federals

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of operatives

For much of the year, Republican operatives have been quietly considering the real possibility that their party might lose the Senate. — ABC News, 8 July 2026

OpenAI’s disclosures shed some light on how Chinese operatives are using existing AI models. — Michael Schuman, The Atlantic, 7 July 2026

Political operatives in both parties expect the ruling to accelerate the flow of money into campaigns and intensify the barrage of television and digital ads that already dominate election season. — David Sivak, The Washington Examiner, 4 July 2026

Political operatives tied to Florida Power & Light’s parent company were involved in the scandal, and a former Republican state senator was convicted of violating campaign finance laws. — Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 27 June 2026

That ceasefire is contingent on a complete cessation of fire by the paramilitary group Hezbollah and the evacuation of all Hezbollah operatives from the South Litani Sector, an area in southern Lebanon. — Dan Mangan, CNBC, 26 June 2026

There’s a whole different kind of stress, too, as political operatives start getting rattled by the cops’ investigation into political contributions, and threaten to shut them down. — Ew Staff, Entertainment Weekly, 25 June 2026

The largest amount, at $960,000, was disclosed last year by political operatives Jack Burkman and Jacob Wohl on behalf of Joseph Schwartz — a nursing home operator who pleaded guilty to charges stemming from a nearly $39 million payroll tax fraud scheme. — Gabe Kaminsky, CBS News, 24 June 2026

The eight defendants, described by federal prosecutors as antifa operatives, were convicted after three weeks of trial and less than two days of jury deliberation in March. — Rachel Royster, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 23 June 2026