agent provocateur: Meaning and Definition of

a•gent pro•vo•ca•teur

Pronunciation: (ā'junt pru-vok"u-tûr' Fr. a-zhän prô-vô-ka-tœr'), [key]
— pl. a•gents pro•vo•ca•teurs
  1. a secret agent hired to incite suspected persons to some illegal action, outbreak, etc., that will make them liable to punishment.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.