stool pigeon

noun

Definition of stool pigeonnext
as in informant
a person who provides information about another's wrongdoing the FBI finally got a break when one of the mob boss's top henchmen turned stool pigeon

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of stool pigeon Once an unconscious stool pigeon, always an unconscious stool pigeon. — Howie Carr, Boston Herald, 12 Nov. 2025 Russo turned stool pigeon within a month of his November 2017 arrest for selling a kilo of cocaine to an undercover agent. — John Annese, New York Daily News, 26 Feb. 2025 They are barred from using certain language during debates including git, guttersnipe, swine and stool pigeon. — Max Colchester, WSJ, 3 Jan. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stool pigeon
  1. informant
  2. informer
  3. canary
  4. rat
  5. reporter
Noun
  • Meanwhile, Mikey Madison stars as Frances Haugen, a Facebook employee turned informant who provided documents to The Wall Street Journal reporter Jeff Horwitz, played by Jeremy Allen White.
    — Savannah Salazar, Vulture, 9 Oct. 2026
  • These days, the actress who played mafiosa girlfriend turned wacked FBI informant Adriana, is still in the entertainment industry and recently started an OnlyFans page.
    — Madeleine Marr, Miami Herald, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of informant
Noun
  • One of State Security’s main goals, as well as a central source of its strength, is turning civilians into informers.
    — Abraham Jiménez Enoa, The Dial, 19 May 2026
  • And so every regime invests in having student informers.
    — Anne Applebaum, The Atlantic, 23 Jan. 2026
Definition of informer
Noun
  • Astronauts bring them on journeys to keep an eye on whether or not the water filtration systems are working, much the way miners used to take canaries down to the coal mines to check for poisonous gas leaks.
    — Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 18 Sep. 2026
  • She’s made room for dozens of pets over the years, ranging from fluffy Chow Chows and Frenchies (her favorite breeds) to canaries, chinchillas, and beautifully fluffy cats.
    — Wendy Rose Gould, Martha Stewart, 11 Sep. 2026
Definition of canary
Noun
  • That includes a robotic ray driven by light-sensitive rat heart cells in 2016 and a fish robot with human heart cells that swam on its own in 2022.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 3 Oct. 2026
  • But of course where there’s one rat, there are usually more, and swarms of rats and an angry sea soon become the man’s antagonists.
    — Kory Grow, Rolling Stone, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of rat
Noun
  • The Athletic, which eliminated its Sox beat writer position a few years ago, had three reporters at Game 3.
    — Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 9 Oct. 2026
  • Local sports reporter Eric Bailey shared a video from the concert.
    — Charisma Madarang, Rolling Stone, 9 Oct. 2026
Definition of reporter

Browse Nearby Words

stoolies
stool pigeon
stool pigeons
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Stool pigeon.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stool%20pigeon. Accessed 11 Oct. 2026.

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