birther

American  

[bur-ther] / ˈbɜr θər /

noun

1. a person who claims that the presidency of Barack Obama was unconstitutional, citing a belief that he was not born in the United States, or denying the authenticity of his birth certificate.

2. a person who claims that a former or current U.S. president or vice president, or a candidate for either office, was not born in the United States, questioning that person’s eligibility to hold the office.

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Other Word Forms

• birtherism noun

Etymology

Origin of birther

First recorded in 2005–10; birth ( def. ) + -er ¹ ( def. )

Example Sentences

Flashback to 2011, when after taking a ribbing from headliner Seth Meyers, President Obama stood at the podium and riffed about many things, including the birther conspiracy.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 23, 2018

Jerome Corsi is a birther who heads the Washington bureau of InfoWars, the conspiracy theory empire of Alex Jones.

From Seattle Times • Mar. 4, 2018

The last time I talked to him was when I went on CNN and criticized him after the birther stuff, and he has never called me again.

From Slate • Jul. 24, 2017

In 2008 and 2009, most traditional newspapers and news broadcasts continued to ignore the birther story.

From The New Yorker • Nov. 4, 2016

Josh Earnest, the White House press secretary, tried to make the case to reporters on Friday that Mr. Obama was not particularly consumed by the long birther debate.

From New York Times • Sep. 18, 2016