delator
Definition
Noun - One who informs against another: A "delator" is a person who accuses or informs against someone, often in a secretive or malicious manner, especially in legal or political contexts.
Usage Examples
- (The informer accused his neighbor in a clandestine way.)
- (An informer who provided evidence for legal prosecution.)
Advanced Usage
"To act as a delator": to serve as an informer or accuser.
- He was despised for acting as a delator during the political purges. (He was hated for informing on others.)
"Delator in a criminal case": a specific person who reports a crime to law enforcement.
- The delator in the theft case received a portion of the recovered goods. (The informant was rewarded for his report.)
Variants and Related Words
Delation (noun): the act of informing against someone; accusation.
- His delation led to the arrest of several conspirators. (The act of informing resulted in arrests.)
Delatory (adjective): relating to or characteristic of a delator.
- Her delatory behavior made her unpopular among colleagues. (Her tendency to inform on others was disliked.)
Synonyms
- Informer: a person who gives information about illegal or secret activities.
- Accuser: one who claims someone has done something wrong.
- Whistleblower: a person who exposes wrongdoing within an organization (often with positive connotation).
Related Idioms
To blow the whistle: to expose illegal or unethical activities.
- The employee blew the whistle on the company's fraud. (He acted as a delator against his employer.)
To rat someone out: to inform on someone, often betraying trust.
- He ratted out his friend to avoid punishment. (He acted as a delator to save himself.)