stool pigeon

noun

Definition of stool pigeonnext
as in informant
a person who provides information about another's wrongdoing the FBI finally got a break when one of the mob boss's top henchmen turned stool pigeon

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 stool pigeon Once an unconscious stool pigeon, always an unconscious stool pigeon. — Howie Carr, Boston Herald, 12 Nov. 2025 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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stool pigeon
  1. informant
  2. informer
  3. canary
  4. rat
  5. reporter
Noun
  • The Justice Department unveiled this case against it, essentially arguing that SPLC had been defrauding its donors by paying informants within far-right groups who were infiltrating those groups.
    — Hanna Rosin, The Atlantic, 9 July 2026
  • Earlier this year, a Times investigation revealed ICE deported an informant who had turned against two of his co-defendants in a meth smuggling case.
    — James Queally, Los Angeles Times, 8 July 2026
Definition of informant
Noun
  • One of State Security’s main goals, as well as a central source of its strength, is turning civilians into informers.
    — Abraham Jiménez Enoa, The Dial, 19 May 2026
  • And so every regime invests in having student informers.
    — Anne Applebaum, The Atlantic, 23 Jan. 2026
Definition of informer
Noun
  • She was also spotted at Royal Ascot alongside William, posing for photos in a canary-yellow dress.
    — Jennifer Hassan, USA Today, 6 July 2026
  • Measles is the canary in the coal mine for vaccination and public health, and at this moment, the canary is singing a doleful tune.
    — Business Columnist, Los Angeles Times, 3 July 2026
Definition of canary
Noun
  • The real problem emerges when mice and rats turn your home into their permanent residence.
    — Alora Bopray, USA Today, 8 July 2026
  • The score drips with a sinister ostinato as the rats scurry into every corner of her castle.
    — Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 6 July 2026
Definition of rat
Noun
  • Adriana Valasis, an N+ reporter in Mexico City who has covered World Cups and the Olympic Games, has seen firsthand how the Mexican national team lifted the fans’ spirits and brought Mexican society together.
    — Eduard Cauich, Los Angeles Times, 5 July 2026
  • Mike Snider is a national trending news reporter for USA TODAY.
    — Mike Snider, USA Today, 5 July 2026
Definition of reporter

Browse Nearby Words

stoolies
stool pigeon
stool pigeons
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Cite this Entry

“Stool pigeon.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stool%20pigeon. Accessed 11 Jul. 2026.

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