insider
Americannoun
-
a person who is a member of a group, organization, society, etc.
-
a person belonging to a limited circle of persons who understand the actual facts in a situation or share private knowledge.
Insiders knew that the president would veto the bill.
-
a person who has some special advantage or influence.
-
a person in possession of corporate information not generally available to the public, as a director, an accountant, or other officer or employee of a corporation.
noun
-
a member of a specified group
-
a person with access to exclusive information
Etymology
Origin of insider
Explanation
An insider is someone, usually one of a small group, who has access to secret or private information. A political insider knows what really goes on behind the scenes in a campaign or a senator's office. In a large company, insiders are privy to financial information or details about the way things work — information that isn't available to an ordinary employee or the general public. In the financial world, an insider knows things about the businesses whose stock is being traded, and "insider trading" is when they illicitly use this information for personal gain.
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.
Investors like to track insider sales, hoping to get a read on the company’s future from those closest to it.
From Barron's • May 18, 2026
Travel agents offer insider information, secure upgrades, and handle logistics, which AI tools currently cannot provide.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 13, 2026
One insider told me the party put "very little thought" into this part of the election.
From BBC • May 10, 2026
FBI charges 30 individuals for insider trading tied to law firms.
From MarketWatch • May 7, 2026
It was an antiwar crowd, and Ellsberg sensed the students’ mistrust of a former Pentagon insider.
From "Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War" by Steve Sheinkin
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.
