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Synonyms

interrogator

American  
[in-ter-uh-gey-ter] / ɪnˈtɛr əˌgeɪ tər /

noun

  1. a person who interrogates.

  2. Also called challenger.  Radio. a transmitter that emits a signal to trigger a transponder.

interrogator British  
/ ɪnˈtɛrəˌɡeɪtə /

noun

  1. a person who interrogates

  2. a radio or radar transmitter used to send interrogating signals

"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

Etymology

Origin of interrogator

1745–55; < Late Latin interrogātor; interrogate, -tor

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.

With this method, a device called an interrogator shoots laser pulses down the length of a cable, and some of the light bounces back.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 9, 2026

"I made a mistake," he says, his voice trembling as an unseen interrogator presses him about the deaths of members of Iran's security forces.

From Barron's • Jan. 26, 2026

“I told my interrogator, ‘Look, you are questioning me now.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 15, 2025

He is a sweary, pompous and then needy figure, unaware of how much he is being exposed by his TV interrogator, Emily Maitlis, played by Ruth Wilson.

From BBC • Sep. 18, 2024

“I’ve been easy on you until now because you are a kid,” the interrogator said.

From "Escape from Camp 14: One Man's Remarkable Odyssey from North Korea to Freedom in the West" by Blaine Harden

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.