informant

[ in-fawr-muhnt ]

/ ɪnˈfɔr mənt /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR informant ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a person who informs or gives information; informer.

a person who supplies social or cultural data in answer to the questions of an investigator.

Linguistics. a native speaker of a language who supplies utterances and forms for one analyzing or learning the language.

Nearby words

Origin of informant

1655–65; < Latin infōrmant- (stem of infōrmāns) present participle of infōrmāre. See inform¹, -ant

SYNONYMS FOR informant

1. source, adviser, tipster.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR informant ON THESAURUS.COM

Can be confusedinformant informer

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for informant

She needs to make sure the informant is alive, but he needs him dead.
‘The Good Wife’ Star Mike Colter Defends Lemond Bishop’s Killer Instincts|Kevin Fallon|September 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In April of this year, the FBI tried to recruit a member of the Guantanamo defense team as an informant.
A Navy Lawyer Cries Foul on Gitmo’s Kafkaesque Legal System|Eleanor Clift|September 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Instead, he was offered a deal: permission to stay, if he became an informant.
Gay Palestinians In Israel: The 'Invisible Men'|Itay Hod|August 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
They want the benefits of being an informant and the income from doing something illegal.
U.S. Visas Helped Fuel the Juárez Drug Wars|Jason McGahan|July 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Prosecutors claim that Monsegur helped prevent as many as 300 cyberattacks during his time as an informant.
How an FBI Informant Orchestrated LulzSec’s Hacking Spree|Joshua Kopstein|June 6, 2014|DAILY BEAST
She gave information to the police, who next (Sunday) morning, accompanied by the informant, came in full force to the barracks.
Adventures and Recollections|Bill o'th' Hoylus End
My informant is a gentleman of honour and of family, one who knows you well—and beyond this I will not be braved to inform you.
Wilson's Tales of the Borders and of Scotland, Volume 19|Various
One of these descendants was seen by my informant wearing the emeralds that had been in the bishop's bag.
South America Observations and Impressions|James Bryce
He lied, for he dared not tell the truth; namely, that the young Navajo was his informant.
The Delight Makers|Adolf Bandelier
The hut was occupied by a Malay and his wife, from whom our informant gathered the following extraordinary account.
Mythical Monsters|Charles Gould

British Dictionary definitions for informant

informant

/ (ɪnˈfɔːmənt) /

noun

a person who gives information about a thing, a subject being studied, etc

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for informant

informant

1660s, "someone or something that supplies information," from Latin informantem (nominative informans), present participle of informare (see inform). Meaning "one who gives information to the authorities, informer" is from 1783. As an adjective from 1890. The older noun was informer.

informant

noun

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Nearby words

Origin of informant

Examples from the Web for informant

informant

noun

informant