PROVOCATEUR Synonyms: 47 Similar and Opposite Words

provocateur

noun

prō-ˌvä-kə-ˈtər

Definition of provocateur

as in rebel

a person who stirs up public feelings especially of discontent a calculating provocateur, she has made a career out of controversy for its own sake

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of provocateur British provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos – who built his career in America through controversial public speaking that appealed to the far right, including calls for aggressive immigration enforcement – now faces deportation from the United States. — Eduardo Cuevas, CNN Money, 29 Aug. 2026 Donalds defeated several primary challengers, including far-right online provocateur James Fishback. — Caroline Linton, CBS News, 19 Aug. 2026 The wedding photos will be taken by Juergen Teller, the provocateur known for his artfully stark images. — Gaby Wood, Vogue, 16 Aug. 2026 On Sunday, James Fishback, an upstart provocateur running in the GOP primary for governor, is expected at multiple stops in South Florida. — Lauren Costantino, Miami Herald, 15 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for provocateur

Recent Examples of Synonyms for provocateur

Noun

The latest conflict between the Saudis and the Houthis began last month after the rebels seized key areas along the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a critical waterway for oil shipments.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 16 Oct. 2026
The latest conflict between the Saudis and the Houthis began last month after the rebels seized key areas along the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a critical waterway for Gulf oil shipments.

— ABC News, ABC News, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of rebel

Noun

Last year, the company dipped its toes into the live events world, serving as the promoter for boy group P1Harmony’s tour — the boy group is slated to perform Saturday at 82World.

— Nicole Fell, HollywoodReporter, 16 Oct. 2026
Before long, a promoter recruited her for his stable of touring female wrestlers.

— Leslie Camhi, New Yorker, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of promoter

Noun

Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez also cited agitators moving between schools to encourage violence.

— Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 10 Oct. 2026
Advertisement As protests intensified, state media unleashed a frenzied smear campaign, casting Egyptian protesters as foreign agents and outside agitators.

— Abdelrahman ElGendy, Time, 6 Oct. 2026

Definition of agitator

Noun

The billionaire tax fight grew more contentious last month after the lead proponent of the measure, SEIU UHW President Dave Regan, was accused of harassing female colleagues and threatening other union leaders to urge them to back the measure.

— ABC News, ABC News, 9 Oct. 2026
The biggest proponent of Proposition NN is the Colorado Education Association, the state's largest teachers' union.

— Shaun Boyd, CBS News, 8 Oct. 2026

Definition of proponent

Noun

Then the rise of talk radio, fueled by right-wing firebrand Limbaugh, and the advent of cable TV, especially Fox News and MSNBC (now MS NOW), started to balkanize the media landscape.

— Edward Robert McClelland, Chicago Tribune, 13 Oct. 2026
Acton holds a narrow edge over Republican firebrand Vivek Ramaswamy, while Kaptur is contending with a tough reelection battle after Ohio Republicans redrew the boundaries of the longtime congresswoman’s district to pull in more GOP voters.

— Mia Cathell, The Washington Examiner, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of firebrand

Noun

Even some supporters of capital punishment, including a number of Republican lawmakers, seemed repelled by the prospect.

— Amy Davidson Sorkin, New Yorker, 16 Oct. 2026
The bottom line of Milton Friedman and other supporters of neoliberalism was that there has to be effective competition, there has to be open entry.

— John E. McDonough, STAT, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of supporter

Noun

Unsheltered intertwined two plots related to the precarity of American life and the danger of demagogues—one set at the dawn of the MAGA era.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 8 Oct. 2026
Unsheltered intertwined two plots related to the precarity of American life and the danger of demagogues — one set at the dawn of the MAGA era.

— Sam Worley, Vulture, 5 Oct. 2026

Definition of demagogue

Noun

In those pages, a protester strikes an ICE officer with her car before being shot by his partner, and the officer subsequently dies.

— Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 15 Oct. 2026
Thunberg, who rose to fame as a teenage protester against climate change but has since broadened her activism, said the French pupils deserved wider support.

— Reuters, NBC news, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of protester

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“Provocateur.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/provocateur. Accessed 21 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of provocateur

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