follower

[fol-oh-er]

noun

1. a person or thing that follows.

2. a person who follows another in regard to their ideas or belief; disciple or adherent.

   Synonyms: supporter
   Antonyms: foe, enemy, adversary, opponent

3. a person who imitates, copies, or takes as a model or ideal.

   He was little more than a follower of current modes.

4. an attendant, servant, or retainer.

5. a person who follows or subscribes to another's posts on a social media website.

   He spent hours figuring out how to get more followers on Twitter.

6. British Informal.,  a boyfriend or suitor, especially of a maidservant.

7. Machinery.,  a part receiving motion from or following the movements of another part, especially a cam.

8. Engineering, Building Trades.,  a concrete form attached to the head of a timber pile to permit casting of a concrete cap or pier.

follower

/ ˈfɒləʊə /

noun

1. a person who accepts the teachings of another; disciple; adherent

   a follower of Marx

2. an attendant or henchman

3. an enthusiast or supporter, as of a sport or team

4. (esp formerly) a male admirer

5. rare,  a pursuer

6. a machine part that derives its motion by following the motion of another part

Word History and Origins

Origin of follower¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English folwer, Old English folgere. See follow, -er ¹

Synonym Study

Follower, adherent, partisan refer to someone who demonstrates allegiance to a person, a doctrine, a cause, or the like. Follower often has an implication of personal relationship or of slavish acquiescence. Adherent, a more formal word, has implications of active championship of a person or a point of view. Partisan, ordinarily meaning a person prejudiced and unreasoning in adherence to a party, during World War II took on the meaning of a member of certain groups in occupied countries of Europe who carried on underground resistance to the Nazis.

Example Sentences

"Entitlement" is not something that tends to be associated with followers of Scottish rugby, for the simple reason they have been given nothing to feel entitled about.

Read more on BBC

He wasn’t, of course, and he reportedly had nothing but contempt for his followers.

Read more on Salon

"One example are neo-pagan groups, a religious and cultural current based on pre-Christian paganism whose followers see themselves as living Scandinavian paganism -- often in contrast to monotheistic religions such as Christianity."

Read more on Science Daily

In posts to her roughly 2 million mostly young Instagram and TikTok followers, Turning Point representative Brown asks: Why wait for marriage and parenthood?

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The R&B singer Kehlani recently told her TikTok followers that “nothing and no one on Earth will ever be able to justify AI to me.”

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• adherent 
• admirer 
• advocate 
• backer 
• believer 
• client 
• devotee 
• disciple 
• fan 
• member 
• participant 
• patron 
• supporter 
• worshiper www.thesaurus.com