troublemaker

noun

Definition of troublemakernext
as in agitator
a person who causes trouble; a person who creates problems or difficulties involving other people He had the reputation of being a troublemaker in high school.

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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 troublemaker She was cast as Athena, the class ‘troublemaker’ was Odysseus, and the school’s headmaster bumbled around, one-eyed, as the Cyclops. — Sarah Shachat, IndieWire, 17 July 2026 Instead, the Plaintiffs were labeled ‘troublemakers’ by the school and, therefore, not trustworthy. — Austin Horn july 14, Miami Herald, 14 July 2026 Waymo then stopped the car and alerted the San Mateo Police, who showed up and detained the troublemakers, according to a post on the department’s Facebook page. — Jonathan M. Gitlin, ArsTechnica, 8 July 2026 To help boost those numbers, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWCC) recently released a brief PSA video advising on the best ways to locate and dispatch the ongoing troublemakers. — Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 2 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for troublemaker
Recent Examples of Synonyms for troublemaker
  1. tease
  2. harasser
  3. agitator
  4. instigator
  5. teaser
Noun
  • McEwen offered a cryptic tease about what audiences can expect.
    — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 28 Aug. 2026
  • The trailer gives a tease into the footage that was filmed leading up to the production pause, including Paul’s return from filming season 22 of The Bachelorette and Whitney Leavitt‘s Broadway debut.
    — McKinley Franklin, HollywoodReporter, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of tease
Noun
  • Parton’s ability to become the harasser without falling into some version of male drag makes this short sequence far superior to the many films with a similar premise that followed.
    — Culture Critic, Los Angeles Times, 26 Aug. 2026
  • White stars can help by publicly supporting their Black colleagues, who are especially targeted by online trolls and harassers.
    — Ian O'Connor, New York Times, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of harasser
Noun
  • At 6-10 and 250 pounds, Freedom looks like an unfamiliar agitator.
    — Jerry Brewer, New York Times, 25 Aug. 2026
  • For several years before the IAU vote, there had been agitators among the astronomical community lobbying for our solar system's nine worlds to become eight, and for Pluto's planetary status to be revoked.
    — Keith Cooper, Space.com, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of agitator
Noun
  • Said another way, Meta’s social media are an instigator of the community and living that are enemies of depression and mental instability.
    — John Tamny, Forbes.com, 18 Aug. 2026
  • The use of simplified Chinese, used in China, found in internal documents linked to the hack suggests a high probability that the instigator, whether public or private, is linked to China, experts said.
    — John Liu, CNN Money, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of instigator
Noun
  • The teaser video even included a shot of a fan with a beer cup snake, a symbol of the lack of focus in the bleachers.
    — Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 1 Sep. 2026
  • The mysterious teaser reveals the trading card game player, who’s dressed in a yellow hoodie like Mimikyu.
    — Jordan Moreau, Variety, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of teaser

Browse Nearby Words

troubled
troublemaker
troublemakers
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Troublemaker.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/troublemaker. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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