predator

American  

[pred-uh-ter, -tawr] / ˈprɛd ə tər, -ˌtɔr /

noun

• predators
  plural

1. Zoology. any organism that exists by preying upon other organisms.

   Cats are carnivorous predators.

2. a person or group that plunders, pillages, or robs, as in war.

   The Vikings were barbarian predators.

3. a person, group, or business that exploits, victimizes, or preys on others: corporate predators who go after smaller rivals.

   a sexual predator who targets children;

   corporate predators who go after smaller rivals.

4. an overbearing, greedy or selfish person.

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predator British  

/ ˈprɛdətə /

noun

1. any carnivorous animal

2. a predatory person or thing

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predator Scientific  

/ prĕd′ə-tər /

1. An animal that lives by capturing and eating other animals.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• antipredator
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• predators
  plural

Etymology

Origin of predator

First recorded in 1580–90; from Latin praedātor “plunderer, pillager,” equivalent to praedā(rī) “to plunder, pillage” (derivative of praeda “booty, plunder”) + -tor, agent noun suffix; see origin at prey, -tor

Explanation

A predator is an animal that eats other animals — or people or companies who act like they do. Lions are predators, but so are pickpockets and some giant corporations. The word predator started out referring to insects that ate other insects, but has grown to include any animal that eats another animal. We humans like to think of ourselves as the top of the food chain, but scary movies love to disagree, like in the 1987 movie Predator, where creepy aliens try to kill and eat us. Predators don't have to kill and eat you, though; they can also just take your stuff. It's from the Latin word praedator, which means "plunderer," which is more like something a pirate would do.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

predator predators

Maybe in the courtroom of Luis Guzman’s impatient judge, the thwarted predator can finally win.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026

"The frequency of marks likely made by Purussaurus suggests that it was an important predator in these tropical ecosystems," Wilson comments.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 19, 2026

But many cannot survive in the true wild, where large-scale predator control remains an endless battle, and are instead sent to fenced nature reserves, themselves high-maintenance undertakings facing problems like in-breeding and overpopulation.

From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026

He was an active participant in defending Andrew Tate, using his influence to validate an accused predator because it fit the edgy, anti-establishment aesthetic of the modern manosphere media.

From Salon ● Jul. 25, 2026

It was a predator, all right: a red-tailed hawk, right here on my farm, just a short ways from my chicken.

From "Unusual Chickens for the Exceptional Poultry Farmer" by Kelly Jones

During breeding season—roughly late April through most of August—they nest in underground burrows on offshore islands where mammalian predators such as mink, rats and foxes can’t get at them or their young.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026

To address the threat of predators, seabird conservation organizations such as Friends of Maine Coastal Islands National Wildlife Refuge have joined with state and federal wildlife agencies over the years to support rigorous rat-eradication programs.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026

For young leopards, survival is far from guaranteed: fewer than half reach independence, with male leopards, lions and other predators among the threats they face.

From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026

The charity said careful monitoring, in partnership with the farmers on whose land the birds nested, meant the nests were protected by fences to exclude ground predators such as foxes.

From BBC ● Aug. 24, 2026

A number of predators — wolves, pumas, and coyotes — prevented the deer from outrunning their food supply.

From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson