commentator
Americannoun
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commentators
plural
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a person who discusses news, sports events, weather, or the like, as on television or radio.
-
a person who makes commentaries.
noun
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a person who provides a spoken commentary for a broadcast, film, etc, esp of a sporting event
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a person who writes notes on a text, event, etc
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of commentator
1350–1400; Middle English < Late Latin commentātor interpreter, equivalent to commentā ( rī ) to interpret ( Latin: to think about, prepare, discuss, write, perhaps frequentative of comminīscī to devise; see comment) + Latin -tor -tor
Explanation
A person who analyzes and discusses topics in politics and sports is called a commentator. If you want to hear opinions on the news rather than the news itself, listen to commentators. A reporter delivers the news and a commentator analyzes it, sometimes within the same news program. If you're a top sports commentator, you may become an even bigger household name than the players you are discussing, and you may pull in just as much money too. Political commentators, who often offer more opinion rather than analysis, are also sometimes called pundits or talking heads.
Vocabulary lists containing commentator
myPerspectives 10.2
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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.
See Examples For:
Royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams told GB news television that it was "an extraordinary development".
From Barron's ● Aug. 19, 2026
As the network’s famed college basketball commentator Dick Vitale would say, “That’s awesome, baby!”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
When he retired from the House, Rogers worked as a talk radio host and commentator for CNN.
From Salon ● Aug. 11, 2026
Earlier Thursday, conservative political commentator Sean Hannity released an episode featuring Hilton that was recorded in recent weeks.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 7, 2026
He asked what a certain medieval commentator had remarked about that statement, and Danny answered.
From "The Chosen" by Chaim Potok
Kyla Scanlon and other financial commentators have warned about Gen Z’s tendency toward financial nihilism — the idea that widespread economic pessimism is pushing more young people to take extreme risks with their money.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 13, 2026
“The market reaction isn’t telling as dire a story as the market commentators are,” said Donald Kohn, a former Fed vice chairman.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
BBC Newsbeat has been speaking to fans, commentators and an ex-Islander to see what they feel the UK edition could learn from the US version to regain its spark.
From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026
But Lamy, who has worked for AFP for over 20 years, warned commentators against rushing to judge the couple.
From Barron's ● Jul. 29, 2026
A foedus is a league, or compact, but it is often used as synonymous with lex, and Renaissance commentators on Lucretius interpreted him as talking about the laws of nature.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
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.
