instigator
Instigator (noun) means someone who deliberately starts or stirs up trouble, an incident, or a plan. Example: “Police named him as the chief instigator of the brawl.”
How to use instigator
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishThe person behind the scenes pushing an event or conflict into motion.
Word forms
- Plural
- instigators
Fill the gap
Can you complete this real example?
Police named him as the chief _____ of the brawl.
Etymology
Came from Latin īnstīgātor (“stimulator”), from īnstīgāre, the present infinitive of īnstīgō (“to incite, set on, stimulate, rouse or urge”), possibly going back to Proto-Indo-European *(s)teyg- (“to be sharp, to stab; to puncture; to goad”), plus -or (from -ō, a suffix forming masculine agent nouns, from Proto-Indo-European *-h₃onh₂-, a suffix forming nouns denoting authority or burden). It is cognate with French instigateur, and by surface analysis breaks down as instigate + -or.
