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In "provocateur," a word borrowed directly from French, one sees the English verb "provoke." Both "provoke" and "provocateur" derive from Latin provocare, meaning "to call forth." Why do we say "provocateur" for one who incites another to action, instead of simply "provoker"? Perhaps it's because of "agent provocateur," a term of French origin that literally means "provoking agent." Both "agent provocateur" and the shortened "provocateur" can refer to someone (such as an undercover police officer or a political operative) whose job is to incite people to break the law so that they can be arrested, but only "provocateur" is used in English with the more general sense of "one who provokes."
Synonyms
Examples of provocateur in a Sentence
Nara Milanich, TIME, 26 Apr. 2024
In this intense tale from provocateur Joel Potrykus, two friends embark on a disturbing mission in the Michigan woods.
—Jack Dunn, Variety, 17 Apr. 2024
Politics in brief Trump world rift: Right-wing provocateur Charlie Kirk was key to the successful effort to oust RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel, but his own conduct is now under the microscope from some Trump allies.
—Josh Feldman, NBC News, 18 Feb. 2024
Not because it was scripted or Travis Kelce’s girlfriend is a psyops or any of the other nonsensical conspiracy theories floated by right-wing provocateurs who are terrified of powerful women and happy people.
—USA TODAY, 12 Feb. 2024
Supreme among noisemakers is Yoko Ono, who first made her name as a principled provocateur in the downtown New York scene—next to her, Cage looked timid—and then shot to global fame through her relationship with John Lennon.
—Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 15 Apr. 2024
Her fabric sculpture is furniture reimagined through a provocateur’s lens.
—Evan Moffitt, New York Times, 28 Mar. 2024
Tangent Right-wing provocateurs have spread a string of conspiracy theories about the reason for the bridge collapse.
—Sara Dorn, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
Vice got its start in Montreal in the 1990s as an alternative punk publication co-founded by Gavin McInnes, a provocateur who went on to found the Proud Boys, a neo-fascist militant organization closely aligned with the American far right.
—Daniel Arkin, NBC News, 23 Feb. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'provocateur.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near provocateur
Cite this Entry
“Provocateur.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/provocateur. Accessed 3 May. 2024.
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