agent

[ey-juhnt]

noun

1. a person or business authorized to act on another's behalf.

   Our agent in Hong Kong will ship the merchandise.

   A best-selling author needs a good agent.

   Synonyms: deputy, representative

2. a person or thing that acts or has the power to act.

3. a natural force or object producing or used for obtaining specific results.

   Many insects are agents of fertilization.

   Synonyms: means

4. an active cause; an efficient cause.

5. a person who works for or manages an agency.

6. a person who acts in an official capacity for a government or private agency as a guard, detective, or spy.

   an FBI agent;

   the secret agents of a foreign power.

7. a person responsible for a particular action.

   Who was the agent of this deed?

8. Grammar.,  a form or construction, usually a noun or noun phrase, denoting an animate being that performs or causes the action expressed by the verb, as the police in The car was found by the police.

9. Indian agent.

10. a representative of a business firm, especially a traveling salesperson; canvasser; solicitor.

11. Chemistry.,  a substance that causes a reaction.

12. Pharmacology.,  a drug or chemical capable of eliciting a biological response.

13. Pathology.,  any microorganism capable of causing disease.

14. British.,  a campaign manager; an election agent.

adjective

1. acting; exerting power (patient ).

verb (used with object)

1. to represent (a person or thing) as an agent; act as an agent for: Who agented that deal?

   to agent a manuscript;

   Who agented that deal?

agent

/ ˈeɪdʒənt, eɪˈdʒɛnʃəl /

noun

1. a person who acts on behalf of another person, group, business, government, etc; representative

2. a person or thing that acts or has the power to act

3. a phenomenon, substance, or organism that exerts some force or effect

   a chemical agent

4. the means by which something occurs or is achieved; instrument

   wind is an agent of plant pollination

5. a person representing a business concern, esp a travelling salesman

6. short for estate agent

7. short for secret agent

agent

1. A substance that can bring about a chemical reaction or a biological effect.

2. Compare reagent

Other Word Forms

• counteragent noun
• interagent noun
• superagent noun
• underagent noun
• agential adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of agent¹

First recorded in 1570–80; from Latin agent-, stem of agēns “doing,” present participle of agere “to do, drive”

Word History and Origins

Origin of agent¹

C15: from Latin agent-, noun use of the present participle of agere to do

Example Sentences

The R360 concept is fronted by Mike Tindall, an England World Cup winner and member of the Royal family, former Bath player and coach Stuart Hooper and Mark Spoors, an executive sports agent.

Read more on BBC

Quinn worked as an insurance agent and financial adviser for decades.

Read more on MarketWatch

Casting agents say the most successful candidates have a few key qualities, but there is one big requirement for all: you must talk about your feelings.

Read more on Wall Street Journal

The platform allows organizations to go beyond chatbots to create complex AI agents that can automate multistep workflows from their own internal data.

Read more on MarketWatch

Some real-estate agents will tell you that it’s never a bad time to buy a home, even if there’s a dip in the market, as long as you don’t sell it.

Read more on MarketWatch

Related Words

• assistant 
• broker 
• commissioner 
• deputy 
• handler 
• lawyer 
• minister 
• officer 
• operative 
• operator 
• promoter 
• representative 
• worker