variants
or whistle-blowers
as in informants
a person who provides information about another's wrongdoing
there are laws to protect whistle-blowers who reveal corporate malfeasance
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of whistleblowers
The lawsuit filed in San Francisco says internal WhatsApp engineers — deemed whistleblowers — allege that the platform’s internal team can request access to user content to conduct their tasks, bypassing encryption.
—
Zak Doffman, Forbes.com, 27 Jan. 2026
Searches like these historically required a judge's approval, but not anymore, according to an internal ICE memo from last May disclosed by two us government whistleblowers, permitting agents to use force to enter the homes of immigrants with final deportation orders.
—Charlie De Mar, CBS News, 22 Jan. 2026
One of the two whistleblowers was allowed to view the memo only in the presence of a supervisor and then had to give it back.
—Rebecca Santana, Los Angeles Times, 22 Jan. 2026
One of the two whistleblowers was allowed to view the memo only in the presence of a supervisor and then had to give it back.
—Rebecca Santana, Chicago Tribune, 21 Jan. 2026
These brave whistleblowers spent seven years and countless hours collaborating with us, recording, investigating, and covertly transmitting files to investigate crimes perpetrated by corrections officers tasked with protecting, not harming, the men in their care.
—Andrew Jarecki & Charlotte Kaufman, IndieWire, 15 Jan. 2026
The whistleblowers allege that the motive was to protect the Moore administration in an already difficult budget cycle.
—Torrey Snow, Baltimore Sun, 11 Jan. 2026
Embracing the power of whistleblowers also has a collateral deterrent effect.
—Randall Fox, New York Daily News, 1 Jan. 2026
Zak Doffman, Forbes.com, 27 Jan. 2026
Searches like these historically required a judge's approval, but not anymore, according to an internal ICE memo from last May disclosed by two us government whistleblowers, permitting agents to use force to enter the homes of immigrants with final deportation orders.
—Charlie De Mar, CBS News, 22 Jan. 2026
One of the two whistleblowers was allowed to view the memo only in the presence of a supervisor and then had to give it back.
—Rebecca Santana, Los Angeles Times, 22 Jan. 2026
One of the two whistleblowers was allowed to view the memo only in the presence of a supervisor and then had to give it back.
—Rebecca Santana, Chicago Tribune, 21 Jan. 2026
These brave whistleblowers spent seven years and countless hours collaborating with us, recording, investigating, and covertly transmitting files to investigate crimes perpetrated by corrections officers tasked with protecting, not harming, the men in their care.
—Andrew Jarecki & Charlotte Kaufman, IndieWire, 15 Jan. 2026
The whistleblowers allege that the motive was to protect the Moore administration in an already difficult budget cycle.
—Torrey Snow, Baltimore Sun, 11 Jan. 2026
Embracing the power of whistleblowers also has a collateral deterrent effect.
—Randall Fox, New York Daily News, 1 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for whistleblowers
Noun
-
Jacobsen, who was appointed chief in 2022, is suspected of stealing money from a department fund that was created to pay confidential informants.—
Edmund H. Mahony,
Hartford Courant,
6 Jan. 2026
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In a separate court filing submitted Monday, Cole’s attorneys also demanded broad discovery, including all statements attributed to him, investigative notes, information about the FBI’s use of informants to identify Cole as a suspect, and any exculpatory material.—
Kaelan Deese,
The Washington Examiner,
29 Dec. 2025
Noun
-
And so every regime invests in having student informers.—
Anne Applebaum,
The Atlantic,
23 Jan. 2026
-
Security services also rely on informers to tell them who might be using Starlink, and search internet and social media traffic for signs it has been used.—
David Rising,
Los Angeles Times,
14 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Like canaries in the coal mine ocean form.—
Ashley Miznazi,
Miami Herald,
16 Oct. 2025
-
During the late 19th and early 20th century, coal miners in Europe and North America used canaries as living carbon monoxide alarms.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
13 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Whistleblowers.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/whistleblowers. Accessed 30 Jan. 2026.
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