double agent
noun
: a spy pretending to serve one government while actually serving another
Example Sentences
He was secretly working as a double agent for the Americans during the war.
Recent Examples on the Web The jury also heard numerous names during trial, including the names of controversial FBI informants and agents who were kicked off the case in 2020 for various reasons — one was accused of being a double agent — and did not testify at trial. 
Tresa Baldas, Detroit Free Press, 19 Aug. 2022 For certain Bureau officers, the prospect called to mind the case of Mata Hari, the Dutch dancer who was recruited by the French during the First World War and then executed by them when she was revealed to have been a double agent for the Germans. Lauren Michele Jackson, The New Yorker, 8 Aug. 2022 While Tala may not be specifically working with the Rebel Alliance, Leia clearly takes a fondness to the double agent, as Blair’s character continuously evokes the spirit of the legendary Carrie Fisher. Sydney Odman, The Hollywood Reporter, 2 June 2022 And a misstep during the chase, the recruitment of a double agent, led to one of the bloodiest days in the agency’s history. New York Times, 2 Aug. 2022 Was the leader of the Mongols motorcycle gang a double agent for the feds? Los Angeles Times, 13 July 2022 The actress made her debut on the Disney+ Series Obi-Wan Kenobi on Wednesday as Tala, an Imperial officer who is something of a double agent, helping out the Rebel Alliance. Ryan Parker, The Hollywood Reporter, 1 June 2022 The freeze set in further as Putin stood accused of attempting to influence the 2016 Brexit vote and, in 2018, of poisoning a Russian double agent in the English town of Salisbury. Simon Usborne, Town & Country, 15 June 2022 In 2018, Lebanon’s former interior minister, Nohad Machnouk, said Lebanese security forces had run a double agent who made contact with and exposed an Islamic State handler in Idlib. Sune Engel Rasmussen, WSJ, 4 Feb. 2022 See More
Tresa Baldas, Detroit Free Press, 19 Aug. 2022 For certain Bureau officers, the prospect called to mind the case of Mata Hari, the Dutch dancer who was recruited by the French during the First World War and then executed by them when she was revealed to have been a double agent for the Germans. Lauren Michele Jackson, The New Yorker, 8 Aug. 2022 While Tala may not be specifically working with the Rebel Alliance, Leia clearly takes a fondness to the double agent, as Blair’s character continuously evokes the spirit of the legendary Carrie Fisher. Sydney Odman, The Hollywood Reporter, 2 June 2022 And a misstep during the chase, the recruitment of a double agent, led to one of the bloodiest days in the agency’s history. New York Times, 2 Aug. 2022 Was the leader of the Mongols motorcycle gang a double agent for the feds? Los Angeles Times, 13 July 2022 The actress made her debut on the Disney+ Series Obi-Wan Kenobi on Wednesday as Tala, an Imperial officer who is something of a double agent, helping out the Rebel Alliance. Ryan Parker, The Hollywood Reporter, 1 June 2022 The freeze set in further as Putin stood accused of attempting to influence the 2016 Brexit vote and, in 2018, of poisoning a Russian double agent in the English town of Salisbury. Simon Usborne, Town & Country, 15 June 2022 In 2018, Lebanon’s former interior minister, Nohad Machnouk, said Lebanese security forces had run a double agent who made contact with and exposed an Islamic State handler in Idlib. Sune Engel Rasmussen, WSJ, 4 Feb. 2022 See More Word History
First Known Use
1935, in the meaning defined above
double agent
noun
as in sleeper
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- sleeper
- stool pigeon
- counterspy
- spy
- courier
- operative
- undercover
- informer
- infiltrator
- mole
- asset
- emissary
- agent
- intelligencer
- spook
- superspy
- spymaster