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View synonyms for predator

predator

[ pred-uh-ter, -tawr ]

noun

  1. Zoology. any organism that exists by preying upon other organisms:

    Cats are carnivorous predators.

  2. a person or group that plunders, pillages, or robs, as in war:

    The Vikings were barbarian predators.

  3. a person, group, or business that exploits, victimizes, or preys on others: corporate predators who go after smaller rivals.

    a sexual predator who targets children;

    corporate predators who go after smaller rivals.

  4. an overbearing, greedy or selfish person.


predator

/ ˈprɛdətə /

noun

  1. any carnivorous animal
  2. a predatory person or thing
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012


predator

/ prĕdə-tər /

  1. An animal that lives by capturing and eating other animals.


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Other Words From

  • an·ti·pred·a·tor noun
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Word History and Origins

Origin of predator1

First recorded in 1580–90; from Latin praedātor “plunderer, pillager,” equivalent to praedā(rī) “to plunder, pillage” (derivative of praeda “booty, plunder”) + -tor, agent noun suffix; prey, -tor
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Example Sentences

When you remove top predators, herbivores like deer increase and they eat all the vegetation.

These new specimens we’ve examined reveal a bizarre, monstrous predator.

As top predators in coastal ecosystems, these furry floaters gobble down a quarter of their body weight in urchins, crabs and clams each day.

They would have been less like a pizza topping and more of a fearsome predator.

All animals need to avoid predators as they find food and shelter.

But when a serial sex predator is playing fanboy, the gag reflex kicks in.

The lascivious sex predator is out; the deep-pocketed caped crusader is most definitely in.

The Air Force has enough MQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper drones.

Amirpour sees the pimp as a liberator rather than a predator.

A man tracks her back to a building where the girl bares her fangs and devours him, reversing the role of predator.

Shortly after midnight Lockley had been awakened when a skunk defeated a hungry predator within a hundred yards of their bivouac.

Wasps in their predator state have been known to render spiders senseless, then bury them encrusted with eggs.

He envisaged a future free of pool hall smells and the glandular malfunctioning of his predator owner.

Heavy bounties paid for wolf heads eventually reduced the depredations of this predator until sheep and goats were fairly safe.

Pursuit by a predator, random movement, or other cause may be responsible for shift from one edge to another.

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