birther
Americannoun
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a person who claims that the presidency of Barack Obama was unconstitutional, citing a belief that he was not born in the United States, or denying the authenticity of his birth certificate.
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a person who claims that a former or current U.S. president or vice president, or a candidate for either office, was not born in the United States, questioning that person’s eligibility to hold the office.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of birther
First recorded in 2005–10; birth ( def. ) + -er 1 ( def. )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“I love to produce, I really enjoy it. I think I’m good at being given a scene and saying, ‘Oh, let me rewrite it,’ but I don’t think I’m a good birther of ideas.
From Los Angeles Times • May 20, 2021
Jerome Corsi is a birther who heads the Washington bureau of InfoWars, the conspiracy theory empire of Alex Jones.
From Seattle Times • Mar. 4, 2018
In a September Quinnipiac survey, 31 percent of whites said Trump’s “participation in the birther movement, which said that President Obama was born outside the United States,” negatively affected their view of him.
From Slate • Jan. 26, 2017
In 2008 and 2009, most traditional newspapers and news broadcasts continued to ignore the birther story.
From The New Yorker • Nov. 4, 2016
Mr. Gingrich said he had seen Mr. Trump until then as “a guy who is getting publicity, playing a game with the birther stuff and enjoying the limelight.”
From New York Times • Mar. 12, 2016
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
