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Glite Dictionary
influence peddler

influence peddler

1 8.8
A person who uses their contacts to get money or favors for others, often in dishonest ways
  • noun
  • /ˈɪnfluəns ˈpɛdlər/
translation icon : traficante de influencias
  • (Former Montana Gov. Marc E. Racicot, pronounced ROS-coe, was one of Bracewell & Patterson's top influence peddlers.
  • influence peddler and lobbyist

He sounds seems more like a serial grifter, serial con man, quite honestly, serial influence peddler.

Examples

  • He was accused of being an influence peddler after securing contracts for his friends in exchange for kickbacks.

  • Ultimately, however, the problem is not the exchange of votes for cash between a corrupt politician and an influence peddler representing a small clientele of robber barons.

    Academic text (2016)

  • He was a small-time influence peddler, venal and imaginative in a way that lowered the faculty; he knew from their faces the prices of the people he dealt with.

    Fiction book (1998)

  • The investigation into corruption revealed several influence peddlers who used their connections for personal gain.

  • The news article highlighted the dangers of influence peddlers in government, who manipulate decisions for their benefit.

Synonyms

fixer
vsinfluence peddler
24 6.1

A person who secretly uses connections to solve others' problems, sometimes illegally

sells access or favors for money using their position
backscratcher
vsinfluence peddler
  • Offensive
1 8.0

A person who gives favors to get favors, often in a dishonest way

sells favors or advantages to others for payment instead of mutual exchange
clientelist
vsinfluence peddler
  • Specialized
9.9

A person who gives goods or favors to get votes

sells advantages for payment rather than exchange for political support

Antonyms

honesty
365 1.0

Being truthful and fair in what you say and do

integrity
132 4.4

Being whole and not broken, for example in a building or file

How Corrupt

influence peddler
1 8.8
briber
1 7.3
fixer
24 6.1

Surface Forms

influence peddler singular
influence peddlers plural

Morphology

influence + peddler

The meaning is directly derivable from combining 'influence' (capacity to affect) with 'peddler' (a seller): it literally denotes someone who 'sells' or trades influence for favors or payment. The verb/noun 'peddle' commonly extends to intangible goods, and this straightforward compositional pattern makes the phrase predictable for learners who know both constituents.

Etymology

The noun influence peddler comes from the image of a peddler, a person who sells small goods on the street, selling influence, or access to powerful people, instead of things. That's why it means 'someone who uses connections for pay, often in a dishonest way'.