Skip to main content
witch-hunter

witch-hunter

3 8.2
A person who unfairly attacks people for their opinions
  • noun
  • /ˈwɪtʃˌhʌntər/
  • Literature
translation icon : cazador de brujas
  • In the village, the witch-hunter was feared for his harsh methods and swift judgments.

Examples

Synonyms

lyncher
vswitch-hunter
  • Offensive
1 9.9

A person who kills or punishes someone in a mob without a legal trial

seeks out and punishes people for their opinions but not necessarily by mob violence
castigator
vswitch-hunter
  • Formal
9.9

A person who strongly criticizes or punishes someone

targets people specifically because of their opinions and often unfairly
vilifier
vswitch-hunter
9.3

A person who says or writes false, hurtful things about someone

actively seeks and punishes people for their opinions, not just attacks by words

Antonyms

282 4.1

A person who supports a cause or policy in public

252 2.8

A person who protects someone or something from harm

How Zealous

fanatic
8 4.3
witch-hunter
  • Literature
3 8.2
persecutor
4 7.9
prosecutor
789 4.6
accuser
93 3.5
complainer
11 2.8
investigator
68 3.6

Surface Forms

witch-hunter singular
witch-hunters plural

Morphology

witch-hunter = witch + hunter (semi-transparent) = witch + hunter

The word is transparently built from 'witch' and 'hunter', but the modern figurative sense extends beyond literal hunting of witches.

Etymology

Witch-hunter comes from the old practice of looking for and punishing 'witches', where witch means someone thought to use magic and hunter is a person who searches for someone. So today a witch-hunter is someone who eagerly looks for and attacks people because of their opinions.