noun
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a person who reports, esp one employed to gather news for a newspaper, news agency, or broadcasting organization
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a person, esp a barrister, authorized to write official accounts of judicial proceedings
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a person authorized to report the proceedings of a legislature
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social welfare an official who arranges and conducts children's panel hearings and who may investigate cases and decide on the action to be taken
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of reporter
1350–1400; Middle English reportour < Anglo-French ( Old French reporteur ). See report, -er 1
Explanation
A reporter is a journalist who goes out and gets the scoop on the news and informs the rest of us. If there’s a news conference or a train crash, a reporter is probably there getting the lowdown. If you want to be a reporter one day, you might study journalism in college, learning to write accurate and informative stories. Many reporters research, write, and edit articles about politics or current events, but you could also be a pop culture reporter or a tech reporter. The newspaper sense of reporter dates from 1798 — earlier it simply meant "one who gives an account."
Vocabulary lists containing reporter
Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Suffixes: -er, -or
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Journalism Jargon
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"Seeking Freedom"
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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.
Reporter Lucas Aulbach noted that the 84-year-old former Senate majority leader has missed more than 20 votes since mid-June after being hospitalized for unspecified reasons.
From Salon • Jul. 2, 2026
Those skills are "impressive enough on a technical level and likeable enough on an emotional one to have you wishing Minetree had actually been allowed to make the role her own," The Hollywood Reporter wrote.
From BBC • Jun. 30, 2026
Per the Hollywood Reporter, Wenders received a lifetime achievement award at the German Film Awards last week and addressed the “Wrong Move” issue in his speech, saying that he would not shoot the scene today.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 4, 2026
Bilton told the Hollywood Reporter he also plans to modernize the show with “some of that kind of gonzo journalism stuff that I”ve done.”
From Salon • Jun. 1, 2026
After their three-week hiatus, the young players borrowed an old automobile from the editor of the California Chess Reporter, Guthrie McClain.
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
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.
