agitator
Americannoun
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a person who stirs up others in order to upset the status quo and further a political, social, or other cause.
The boss said he would fire any union agitators.
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a machine or device for agitating and mixing.
noun
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a person who agitates for or against a cause, etc
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a device, machine, or part used for mixing, shaking, or vibrating a material, usually a fluid
Usage
What does agitator mean? An agitator is someone who attempts to promote support or opposition for a political or social cause, especially by repeatedly raising the issue and bringing awareness to it.To do this is to agitate, and the act of doing this can be called agitation. Both words are much more commonly used in more general ways. The verb agitate more commonly means to make someone feel anxious or to stir something up, like how a storm agitates the ocean.Calling someone an agitator often implies that they are trying to stir things up and change the status quo, especially in a way that’s controversial. People who intend to do this might call themselves agitators. However, the word agitator is often used in a negative way, perhaps implying that such a person only intends to cause trouble. A more negative synonym for agitator is provocateur. A more positive or neutral synonym is activist.The word agitator is also used in another very specific but unrelated way, as a name for a machine part whose function is agitating or mixing. This sense of the word is most commonly used to refer to part of a washing machine that agitates the clothes (spins them around in the water).Example: He has spent years as a prominent antiwar agitator, protesting the proliferation of the military-industrial complex.
Other Word Forms
- agitatorial adjective
Etymology
Origin of agitator
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.
A deep voice rose above the shuddering of the wash drum agitators that floated out to the yard from the workroom.
From Literature
“Justice has been served against two agitators who stalked a federal employee, livestreamed it on social media, and traumatized both the victim and his family,” First Asst.
From Los Angeles Times
One possible approach is buying the stock when the agitator is first making noise and then selling if the target company finally gives in to an activist’s demands.
From Barron's
On the morning of Jan. 18, according to prosecutors, Mr. Lemon joined 20 to 40 agitators in a “coordinated takeover-style attack” on Cities Church in St. Paul during Sunday service.
For days before Lemon’s arrest, she had slammed his actions, writing on X that she and Bondi “will not tolerate harassment of Americans at worship — especially from agitators posing as ‘journalists.’”
From Los Angeles Times
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.
