interloper
Americannoun
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a person who interferes or meddles in the affairs of others.
He was an atheist who felt like an interloper in this religious gathering.
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an intruder; trespasser.
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a person who intrudes into some region or field of trade without a proper license.
noun
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an intruder
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a person who introduces himself into professional or social circles where he does not belong
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a person who interferes in matters that are not his concern
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a person who trades unlawfully
Etymology
Origin of interloper
First recorded in 1585–95; inter- + lope + -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.
The interloper came from an unlikely place: Ohio.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 3, 2026
From its display case in the museum’s “Stories from Mesoamerica” hall, the iridescent plumage shimmers like a rainbow encased in glass, a tropical interloper to these northern climes.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 24, 2025
The career interloper was on the cusp of becoming the establishment, if he wasn’t already.
From Slate • Sep. 10, 2025
The last time he played Glastonbury, in 2002, he was viewed as an interloper – sitting awkwardly on the bill beside the likes of The White Stripes, Coldplay and Orbital.
From BBC • Jun. 24, 2025
There I was an interloper, wandering in rooms that did not know me, sitting at a desk and in a chair that was not mine.
From "Rebecca" by Daphne du Maurier
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.
