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Showing results for provocateur. Search instead for provokateurs.
Definitions

provocateur

[pruh-vok-uh-tur, -toor, praw-vaw-ka-tœr] / prəˌvɒk əˈtɜr, -ˈtʊər, prɔ vɔ kaˈtœr /
NOUN
agent provocateur
Synonyms
WEAK
agitator firebrand goad incendiary instigator intelligence agent noncooperator operative provocative agent provoker rabble-rouser radical ringleader spark spy troublemaker
NOUN
agitator
Synonyms
STRONGEST
anarchist demagogue firebrand malcontent propagandist protestor radical troublemaker zealot
STRONG
dissident dogmatist fighter fomenter incendiary inciter instigator mover partisan rabble-rouser rebel revisionist revolutionary ringleader
WEAK
disrupter sparkplug wave maker
Antonyms
STRONGEST
moderate
NOUN
inciter
Synonyms
STRONG
advocate agent anarchist champion demagogue dissident fighter firebrand fomenter heretic incendiary instigator leftist malcontent mover partisan propagandist pusher rabble-rouser radical reactionary rebel reformer revisionist revolutionary ringleader troublemaker zealot
WEAK
disrupter sparkplug wave maker
Antonyms
STRONG
moderate peacemaker
NOUN
instigator
Synonyms
STRONGEST
ringleader
STRONG
agitator firebrand hellion incendiary inciter knave meddler mischief-maker nuisance punk rabble-rouser
WEAK
agent provocateur inflamer sparkplug wise guy

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.

In concert, she’s powerful, hardly a princess of perfection but gorgeously garish, a fun and funny powerhouse provocateur, dripping in costumes, onstage audience members and sweat.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 19, 2026

Witty and mischievous, a punster and provocateur, Man Ray excelled as a photographer, filmmaker and object-maker.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 27, 2025

Reckzeh had been set up as a spy and agent provocateur by the Gestapo: Thadden had been fooled by his elaborately constructed cover story.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 19, 2025

Fuentes famously spent years harassing Kirk and his Turning Point staff at similar college campus events before Kirk banned the provocateur.

From Salon • Oct. 29, 2025

Coleman is a classicist who studied at Oxford and a former consultant for McKinsey & Company who clearly enjoys his role as a provocateur.

From "Drama High" by Michael Sokolove

Vocabulary lists containing provocateur

Ender's Game

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