1
as in informer
a person who provides information about another's wrongdoing
the arrested drug dealer vowed that he would get his revenge on his betrayer
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2
as in traitor
one who betrays a trust or an allegiance
the betrayer of Anne Frank's family in Amsterdam has never been identified for certain
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Recent Examples of betrayer
Judas, the betrayer of Jesus Christ, was believed to be the 13th Apostle to join the table at the Last Supper.
—
Chad Murphy, Cincinnati Enquirer, 13 Feb. 2026
Chad Murphy, Cincinnati Enquirer, 13 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for betrayer
Noun
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And so every regime invests in having student informers.—
Anne Applebaum,
The Atlantic,
23 Jan. 2026
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The whole family is deeply involved in the revolutionary movement: the oldest son disappears into Siberia, never to be seen or heard of again, while the youngest, eighteen, is jailed together with his father, and executed after his cell is exposed by an informer.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
22 Jan. 2026
Noun
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As the castle’s internal order collapses under the weight of a string of baffling crimes, Araki strikes a fragile alliance with Kuroda Kanbei – a razor-minded captive languishing in his own dungeon – in a race to root out a traitor before Oda’s army closes in.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
14 Apr. 2026
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In the context of his time, Jesus was considered a traitor — an enemy of the Roman Empire.—
Michael J Christensen,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
30 Mar. 2026
Noun
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In addition to ignoring glaring inconsistencies in the sole eyewitness account, Kuby said prosecutors illegally hid from the defense benefits provided to the girl’s mom and buried evidence identifying the true killer provided by informants, who came forward years after the trial.—
Molly Crane-Newman,
New York Daily News,
28 Apr. 2026
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In another case, the SPLC said intel from the informant program was passed to law enforcement and led to the conviction of a man who lied about his ties to a white supremacist group while requesting national security clearance.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
28 Apr. 2026
Noun
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The canary for the royal coal mine was the hot equerry.—
Elise Taylor,
Vanity Fair,
30 Apr. 2026
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Kristen Wile of Unpretentious Palate kindly offered me a bite of her toothsome barbacoa entree, wrapped in a collard leaf and served with mayocoba (a creamy, yellow-green canary bean) and a red and green salsa duo.—
Heidi Finley,
Charlotte Observer,
28 Apr. 2026
Noun
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The Angels went to bat against the rats, announcing that cleaning crews would get to work an hour after each game instead of waiting until the next morning.—
Steve Henson,
Los Angeles Times,
28 Apr. 2026
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The Los Angeles Angels have seemingly traded the rally monkey in for alley rats.—
Alejandro Avila OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
28 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Betrayer.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/betrayer. Accessed 3 May. 2026.
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