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provocateur

[pruh-vok-uh-tur, -too r; French praw-vaw-ka-tœr]
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noun, plural pro·vo·ca·teurs [pruh-vok-uh-turz, -too rz; French praw-vaw-ka-tœr] /prəˌvɒk əˈtɜrz, -ˈtʊərz; French prɔ vɔ kaˈtœr/.

a person who provokes trouble, causes dissension, or the like; agitator.
(italics) French. agent provocateur.

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RELATED WORDS

ringleader, malcontent, reactionary, radical, firebrand, demagogue, propagandist, zealot, anarchist, troublemaker, leftist, meddler, knave, rabble-rouser, punk, incendiary, inciter, agitator, mischief-maker, hellion

Nearby words

  1. provitamin,
  2. provitamin a,
  3. provitamin d2,
  4. provo,
  5. provocate,
  6. provocation,
  7. provocative,
  8. provoke,
  9. provoking,
  10. provolone

Origin of provocateur

1915–20; < French < Latin prōvocātor challenger, appellant, equivalent to provocā(re) to provoke + -tor -tor
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for provocateur

British Dictionary definitions for provocateur

provocateur

noun

a person who deliberately behaves controversially in order to provoke argument or other strong reactions
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 provocateur

provocateur

n.

1915 (Emma Goldman), shortened form of agent provocateur "person hired to make trouble" (1845), from French provocateur, from Latin provocator "challenger," from provocare "to call out" (see provoke).

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper