aggressor

noun

ag·​gres·​sor ə-ˈgre-sər How to pronounce aggressor (audio)
Synonyms of aggressornext
: one that commits or practices aggression

Synonyms of aggressor

Relevance
See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus

Examples of aggressor in a Sentence

Each country accused the other of being the aggressor. a group of smaller states had formed an alliance to deter potential aggressors
Recent Examples on the Web
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.
After the altercation, West Hollywood city officials were quick to paint Niemi as the aggressor and urged Dist. — James Queally, Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2026 This was wrong, Walzer insisted—such a principle would encourage aggressors to be as destructive as possible. — Jordi Graupera, New Yorker, 22 Oct. 2026 The negotiation track has support from Ukraine but none so far from the aggressor, Russia. — David Ignatius, Washington Post, 21 Oct. 2026 In Game 1, the Guardians were the aggressor, coming back in the second half of the game and scoring all of their runs. — Outkick, FOXNews.com, 18 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for aggressor

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Latin, "attacker, assailant," from aggredī, adgredī "to approach, attack" + -tor, agent suffix — more at aggress

First Known Use

1585, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of aggressor was in 1585

Rhymes for aggressor

See All Rhymes for aggressor

Browse Nearby Words

aggressiveness
aggressor
aggrievance
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Aggressor.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/aggressor. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

aggressor

noun
ag·​gres·​sor ə-ˈgres-ər How to pronounce aggressor (audio)
: a person or country that attacks without reasonable cause

Medical Definition

aggressor

noun
ag·​gres·​sor ə-ˈgres-ər How to pronounce aggressor (audio)
: one who exhibits aggression
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of milieu

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All