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Definition of saboteur

saboteur

/ˌsæb.əˈtɜːr/
sab · o · teur
Plural:saboteurs
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saboteur Lexical Profile

saboteur Game Scores & Validity

• noun

1

A person who deliberately destroys, damages, or obstructs something, especially for political, strategic, or competitive advantage.

Example

"Investigators concluded that a corporate saboteur had intentionally corrupted the company's backup servers."

Synonyms
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Antonyms
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• Rhymes for saboteur

• Nearby Words

sable
sablefish
sabotage
saboteur
sabrina
sabyinyo
sac

Word Origin & Etymology

Borrowed in the late 19th century from French saboteur, derived from saboter ('to clatter with wooden shoes' or 'to botch or wreck'), itself from sabot ('wooden clog'). A popular folk etymology holds that striking French workers threw their wooden clogs into factory machinery, though linguists attributes it more directly to the noisy, clumsy work of peasant laborers wearing clogs.

Cite this Entry

Wordmom. (2026). Definition of Saboteur. In Wordmom Dictionary. Retrieved Nov 5, 2026, from https://wordmom.com/dictionary/saboteur
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