tamper
1 Americanverb (used without object)
-
to meddle, especially for the purpose of altering, damaging, or misusing (usually followed bywith ).
Someone has been tampering with the lock.
- Synonyms:
- interfere
-
to make changes in something, especially in order to falsify (usually followed bywith ).
to tamper with official records.
-
to engage secretly or improperly in something.
-
to engage in underhand or corrupt dealings, especially in order to influence improperly (usually followed bywith ).
Any lawyer who tries to tamper with a jury should be disbarred.
noun
verb
-
(usually foll by with) to interfere or meddle
-
to use corrupt practices such as bribery or blackmail
-
(usually foll by with) to attempt to influence or corrupt, esp by bribery
to tamper with the jury
noun
-
a person or thing that tamps, esp an instrument for packing down tobacco in a pipe
-
a casing around the core of a nuclear weapon to increase its efficiency by reflecting neutrons and delaying the expansion
Other Word Forms
- tamperer noun
- untampered adjective
Etymology
Origin of tamper1
First recorded in 1560–70; probably variant of temper (verb)
Origin of tamper2
Explanation
To tamper is to alter or mess with something, usually for a bad reason. Tamper also refers to being nosy about someone's business. Don’t tamper with anything; it’s annoying. Tamper involves sticking your nose where it doesn't belong. One kind of tampering involves meddling in other people's affairs. The other kind of tampering has to do with things. If you tamper with financial records, you alter them. Sometimes medicine or food will come with a label that says “tamper proof,” like when a bottle of vitamins is sealed so that you can’t open it until you buy it.
Vocabulary lists containing tamper
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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.
When agents go rogue, they can tamper with or delete valuable files.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 16, 2026
It also says that the product "features tamper detection technology to prevent people from covering that light".
From BBC • Jan. 8, 2026
There’s no worrying about that now that teams can tamper with the balls again.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 6, 2025
Both antibiotics tamper with bacteria's ability to make new proteins by specifically targeting their ribosomes.
From Science Daily • Nov. 29, 2024
“It seems I’m going to have to tamper with your memory.”
From "Twilight" by Stephenie Meyer
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.
