whistle-blower

or whis·tle blow·er

[hwis-uh l-bloh-er, wis-]

See more synonyms for whistle-blower on Thesaurus.com

noun

a person who informs on another or makes public disclosure of corruption or wrongdoing.

Origin of whistle-blower

First recorded in 1965–70

Related formswhis·tle-blow·ing, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for whistleblower

spy, hypocrite, renegade, deserter, conspirator, impostor, turncoat, informer, defector, blabbermouth, tattler, double-crosser, sneak, betrayer, squealer, source, fink, stoolie, snitch, tattletale

Examples from the Web for whistleblower

Contemporary Examples of whistleblower

Zaid said he was disappointed by the ruling in the whistleblower case.
Senior DOE Official Wants Probe Into Firing of Los Alamos Dissident
Center for Public Integrity
September 16, 2014
What does seem clear is that Dr. Thompson had no intention of being a whistleblower in the first place.
Anti-Vaxxers Have a New Hero
Russell Saunders
September 1, 2014
“This is what your bosses, the executives, are being evaluated for,” the whistleblower said.
Exclusive: Texas VA Run Like a ‘Crime Syndicate,’ Whistleblower Says
Jacob Siegel
May 28, 2014
But while UConn is treating Holt as a whistleblower, it appears her sorority sisters are treating her as a traitor.
How Kappa Kappa Gamma Threw A UConn Sorority Sister Under The Bus
Emily Shire
May 15, 2014
Ernst, on the other hand, thought the NSA whistleblower was “a traitor.”
Iowa GOP Senate Debate Shows Divides
Ben Jacobs
April 25, 2014

British Dictionary definitions for whistleblower

whistle-blower

noun

informal a person who informs on someone or puts a stop to something

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 whistleblower

in the figurative sense, by 1970, American English, from whistle (as something sounded in an alert) + agent noun from blow (v.1). Earlier in U.S. sports slang sense "referee."