whistleblower

noun

whis·​tle·​blow·​er ˈ(h)wi-səl-ˌblō-ər 

variants or whistle-blower

plural whistleblowers or whistle-blowers

: one who reveals something covert or who informs against another

especially : an employee who brings wrongdoing by an employer or by other employees to the attention of a government or law enforcement agency

Note: A whistleblower is commonly protected legally from retaliation.

I think whistleblowers play a hugely important role in countering the worst corporate and government excesses.

—Damon Poeter

… pledges to protect whistle-blowers who fear reprisals for their efforts.

—Wall Street Journal

Congress also added significant new protection for whistleblowers. The 1986 act provides remedies including reinstatement, back-pay with interest, and, as appropriate, punitive damages for whistleblowers who are discharged, demoted, or discriminated against due to involvement with a False Claims disclosure.

—Bradford A. Penney

whistleblowing

ˈ(h)wi-səl-ˌblō-iŋ 

adjective

or whistle-blowing

a whistleblowing report

Many states have already enacted laws that protect whistle-blowing employees from retaliation.

—Greg Critser

whistleblowing noun

or whistle-blowing

… a National Security Agency agent who got in trouble for whistle-blowing.

—Renée Camus

Synonyms

• betrayer
• canary [slang]
• deep throat
• fink
• informant
• informer
• nark [British]
• rat
• rat fink
• snitch
• snitcher
• squealer
• stool pigeon
• stoolie
• talebearer
• tattler
• tattletale
• telltale

Examples of whistleblower in a Sentence

There are laws to protect whistleblowers who reveal corporate malfeasance.

Recent Examples on the Web

The state of Texas has been ordered to pay three whistleblowers more than $37 million in a 13-year-old case relating to Medicaid fraud alleging improper billings by dentists and corporate dental chains. —John C. Moritz, Austin American-Statesman, 3 Jan. 2025

Rogan's sizable audience has watched over the years as the host has welcomed a number of household names onto his show, including Senator Bernie Sanders, whistleblower Edward Snowden, and billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk, and President-elect Donald Trump in the concluding weeks of his campaign. —Dan Perry, Newsweek, 3 Jan. 2025

National experts will be brought in for a system-wide review of the department’s practices, and a whistleblower hotline will be expanded to include additional partnerships with advocacy groups, as well. —Juliann Ventura, The Hill, 31 Dec. 2024

Violence and intimidation: The cartel employs extreme measures to maintain control over its operations and silence potential whistleblowers. —Kurt Knutsson, Cyberguy Report, Fox News, 24 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1906, in the meaning defined above

Legal Definition

whistleblower

noun

whis·​tle·​blow·​er

ˈhwi-səl-ˌblō-ər

: an employee who brings wrongdoing by an employer or other employees to the attention of a government or law enforcement agency and who is commonly vested by statute with rights and remedies for retaliation compare qui tam action

whistleblowing

-iŋ

noun