Fifth Columnist (Noun)
Meaning
A member of a clandestine subversive organization who tries to help a potential invader.
Classification
Nouns denoting people.
Examples
- The government suspected that the politician was a fifth columnist working secretly with the enemy to undermine the country's defenses.
- During wartime, the authorities were on high alert for fifth columnists who might be transmitting sensitive information to the enemy.
- The journalist was accused of being a fifth columnist after publishing a series of articles that seemed to sympathize with the enemy's cause.
- The fifth columnist was caught sending coded messages to the enemy's headquarters, revealing the location of the country's military bases.
- Historians have long debated whether the famous traitor was a genuine fifth columnist or simply a misguided idealist who got caught up in the wrong cause.