rabble-rouser

American  

[rab-uhl-rou-zer] / ˈræb əlˌraʊ zər /

noun

1. a person who stirs up the passions or prejudices of the public, usually for self-interested reasons; demagogue.

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rabble-rouser British  

noun

1. a person who manipulates the passions of the mob; demagogue

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Other Word Forms

• rabble-rousing adjective

Etymology

Origin of rabble-rouser

First recorded in 1835–45

Example Sentences

It’s not that Fennell isn’t good at playing the rabble-rouser, as many have alleged.

From Salon • Feb. 23, 2026

Teaming up with counterculture rabble-rouser Jerry Rubin, Lennon and Ono speak of peace and love with a naïveté that is both poignant and inspiring.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 11, 2025

Ferguson has been a steady conservative, but not a right-wing rabble-rouser.

From Seattle Times • May 10, 2024

He’s since worked to become less of a rabble-rouser, and he left the caucus in 2023.

From Slate • Apr. 11, 2024

He was new, someone they’d picked up in the Paradise Islands, and a bit of a rabble-rouser, but no one contradicted him when he said it again, louder: “It just ain’t right.”

From "The Reader" by Traci Chee