1
as in spies
a person who tries secretly to obtain information for one country in the territory of another usually unfriendly country
CIA operatives take terrible risks to find out the secrets of foreign countries
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in detectives
a person not on the police force who investigates criminal or illicit activity or searches for missing persons
set in the 1930s, the novel is about a washed-out operative working for a third-rate detective agency
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of operatives
Garvey is just one of hundreds of anti-government operatives training agitators to interfere with federal law enforcement.
—
Asra Q. Nomani , Alba Cuebas-Fantauzzi, FOXNews.com, 5 Feb. 2026
His espionage thriller Lioness, which stars Nicole Kidman and Zoe Saldaña as CIA operatives, is in production on its third season.
—Uwa Ede-Osifo, Dallas Morning News, 3 Feb. 2026
Venezuelans in the past two decades have watched as the regime squandered the wealth that oil had created, let the country’s oil infrastructure rot, removed gasoline subsidies, and welcomed a bigger hand from Cuba, bartering oil for professionals and intelligence operatives from Havana.
—The Atlantic, 29 Jan. 2026
Between the Good and Pretti shootings, GOP operatives had been hammering how Democratic incumbents and challengers in competitive 2026 midterm races were embracing anti-ICE positions, which echoed those previous calls to throttle the agency.
—Phillip M. Bailey, USA Today, 29 Jan. 2026
Set against escalating Arctic ambitions by Russia and China, the story follows a Finnish family of operatives navigating military conflict, biological warfare, and global espionage as geopolitical tensions reach breaking point.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 27 Jan. 2026
The Game of Thrones alum stars alongside Haley Lu Richardson in the new Peacock thriller series, which follows Bea (Clarke) and Twila (Richardson), two widows of CIA agents who take their husbands' places in Moscow as CIA operatives.
—Brenton Blanchet, PEOPLE, 21 Jan. 2026
Cuban intelligence operatives have been present in Venezuela since the early 2000s.
—Helena Carpio, Time, 16 Jan. 2026
When their men are killed in a suspicious plane crash, the wives decide to become CIA operatives themselves in hopes of uncovering the truth.
—Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 14 Jan. 2026
Asra Q. Nomani , Alba Cuebas-Fantauzzi, FOXNews.com, 5 Feb. 2026
His espionage thriller Lioness, which stars Nicole Kidman and Zoe Saldaña as CIA operatives, is in production on its third season.
—Uwa Ede-Osifo, Dallas Morning News, 3 Feb. 2026
Venezuelans in the past two decades have watched as the regime squandered the wealth that oil had created, let the country’s oil infrastructure rot, removed gasoline subsidies, and welcomed a bigger hand from Cuba, bartering oil for professionals and intelligence operatives from Havana.
—The Atlantic, 29 Jan. 2026
Between the Good and Pretti shootings, GOP operatives had been hammering how Democratic incumbents and challengers in competitive 2026 midterm races were embracing anti-ICE positions, which echoed those previous calls to throttle the agency.
—Phillip M. Bailey, USA Today, 29 Jan. 2026
Set against escalating Arctic ambitions by Russia and China, the story follows a Finnish family of operatives navigating military conflict, biological warfare, and global espionage as geopolitical tensions reach breaking point.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 27 Jan. 2026
The Game of Thrones alum stars alongside Haley Lu Richardson in the new Peacock thriller series, which follows Bea (Clarke) and Twila (Richardson), two widows of CIA agents who take their husbands' places in Moscow as CIA operatives.
—Brenton Blanchet, PEOPLE, 21 Jan. 2026
Cuban intelligence operatives have been present in Venezuela since the early 2000s.
—Helena Carpio, Time, 16 Jan. 2026
When their men are killed in a suspicious plane crash, the wives decide to become CIA operatives themselves in hopes of uncovering the truth.
—Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 14 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for operatives
Noun
-
The Americans stars Matthew Rhys and Keri Russell as Soveit spies posing as an American family during the Cold War.—
Randall Colburn,
Entertainment Weekly,
30 Jan. 2026
-
One worker joined the FBI and made a career in counterintelligence, sniffing out Chinese spies.—
Hanna Rosin,
The Atlantic,
22 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Square-jawed detectives were tripping over corpses at midtown construction sites, blind vigilantes were redecorating Hell’s Kitchen with body parts and even poor Lester the doorman ended up dead in an Upper West Side courtyard fountain.—
Benjamin Svetkey,
HollywoodReporter,
11 Feb. 2026
-
The office said several hundred detectives and agents are on the case.—
NBC News,
NBC news,
11 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Now, as investigators searching for Nancy Guthrie focus on possible leads, Schweit and several other former FBI agents say the details released so far suggest the perpetrator likely had prior knowledge of the home or family, and a financial rather than ideological motivation for the crime.—
Chris Kenning,
USA Today,
8 Feb. 2026
-
Still, a few hundred departing would leave more than 2,000 agents in the Twin Cities and surrounding areas – a federal force more than three times the size of the Minneapolis Police Department.—
Ray Sanchez,
CNN Money,
8 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Some accusations couldn't be verified, investigators wrote.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
9 Feb. 2026
-
The sheriff’s department posted on social media to say access was restricted to the road in front of the home to give investigators space.—
Christopher Weber,
Twin Cities,
8 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Operatives.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/operatives. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.
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